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Local news, arts, sports, home and real estate â&#x20AC;Ś
and the Best Of Palo Alto 2011!

Perinatal
Diagnostic
Center

Packard
Children’s
Hospital

Obstetric
Anesthesia

Center for
Fetal Health

Stanford
School of
Medicine

TOGETHER
WHAT DREW US HERE AS DOCTORS, DRAWS US
BACK AS PATIENTS.

www.lpch.org

Obstetricians Karen Shin and Mary Parman spend their days caring for
pregnant patients and delivering babies. Now that each doctor is pregnant
with her ﬁrst child, the choice of where to deliver is clear: right here where
they deliver their patients’ babies, at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital.
“At Packard, every specialist you could ever need is available within
minutes, around the clock. When you’ve seen how successfully the
physicians, staff and nurses work, especially in unpredictable situations,
you instinctively want that level of care for you and your baby.”
To learn more about the services we provide to expectant mothers
and babies, visit lpch.org

Upfront

Local news, information and analysis

Palo Alto businesses protest Amazon tax resistance
Brick-and-mortar retailers call Amazon a selfish
‘scofflaw’ for trying to repeal an Internet sales-tax bill
alo Alto’s brick-and-mortar
businesses that pay sales
taxes are protesting Amazon.
com’s attempts to get an exemption for Internet sales it conducts in
California.
A coalition of small businesses
from Palo Alto and Menlo Park
held a press conference Wednesday
morning (Aug. 17) at Palo Alto Bicycles to address the issue. Participants included Palo Alto Bicycles,
Bell’s Books, Kepler’s Books and
Magazines of Menlo Park, Chain
Reaction Bicycles of Redwood
City, wholesalers and the California
Teachers Association.
The group is taking part in a statewide campaign by the nonprofit
group Stand With Main Street to
raise awareness of Amazon’s attempt to repeal a state law. California legislators approved the e-fairness bill in June to expand sales-tax
collection to more Internet retailers.
The state could receive an additional $200 million annually from the
sales-tax revenue.
Amazon has spent a reported $3
million to try to overturn the law
through a ballot referendum that
requires retailers with a physical
presence in the state to collect sales
tax.
Amazon also fired thousands of
California affiliate businesses that

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sell merchandise through its website because their physical presence
would make the online retailer have
to pay sales tax under law.
But Palo Alto business owners said Wednesday that Amazon
should pay, given that the state is
cash-strapped and an exemption
creates an unfair advantage for the
Internet giant.
Brick-and-mortar retail businesses already have difficulty competing with large e-tailers that offer
products at lower cost, they said.
Online-only mega-retailers that exploit the loophole have an advantage
of nearly 10 percent, according to
Stand With Main Street. Brick-andmortar retail businesses that employ
California workers are losing an
estimated $4.1 billion annually in
sales to online retailers.
That number is expected to rise.
Goldman Sachs estimates online
shopping will increase from 4.4 percent of all retail sales to 17.1 percent
in the near future. Since 2000, online sales have more than tripled.
Jeff Selzer, owner of Palo Alto
Bicycles, said that, though online
retailers can offer discounted products, brick-and-mortar stores provide service and expertise. It’s frustrating when customers try out new
products and take advantage of the
store’s expertise, then turn around

Veronica Weber

by Sue Dremann

Clark Kepler, front, owner of Kepler’s Books and Magazines, speaks during a press conference with fellow
small-business owners and educators on Wednesday (Aug. 17) at Palo Alto Bicycles. People had gathered to
show their support for an e-fairness bill, protesting Amazon’s special tax benefits.
and buy the product online, he said.
Paying sales tax is also about funding government services, he said.
“The tax is not just good for local
businesses but for the entire state,”
he said.
“We’ve been doing business in
this state for 81 years. Our state is
not doing well. It seems to me absolutely ludicrous” for the state to
exempt online companies from sales
taxes while the tax base for basic
services is shrinking, he said.

Faith Bell of Bell’s Books said
Amazon is disingenuous when the
company claims it doesn’t have a
physical presence in California but
its Kindles are produced in San Jose
and distributed in the Bay Area.
Bell’s has been in downtown Palo
Alto for 76 years. Sales tax pays for
local road and infrastructure repairs,
she said.
“I don’t know how much money
we’ve collected that went toward infrastructure in the state and county.

“It irks me that others can sell
their products without benefiting
anybody but themselves,” she said.
Don Dawson, a California Teachers Association board member for
Silicon Valley, said declining salestax revenue has been devastating for
schools.
For the past three years schools
have lost $20 billion in funding
statewide, affecting class sizes and
(continued on page 10)

LAND USE
EDUCATION

Palo Alto Bowl to close

Paly to get a handle
on homework loads

Shuttering of Midpeninsula’s last alley follows national trend
by Jeff Carr
alo Alto Bowl owner Rhythm
Smith sat Monday facing a
sea of empty lanes, wringing
her hands — her left, with its long,
milk-white nails, and her right, the
bowling hand. She was distraught
about the impending closure of the
local institution, which still bears
many of the sights and sounds reminiscent of its founding days in 1957.
Its shutdown on Sept. 16 represents
not only the loss of her business but
the continuation of a nationwide
downward spiral for traditional
bowling alleys.
Palo Alto Bowl has been on
death’s door for some time. The fatal blow landed in December 2009,
when the Palo Alto City Council approved a plan to demolish the alley,
as well as the nearby Motel 6 and a
small retail strip, and replace it with
a mixed-use project consisting of a
major brand hotel and 26 townhous-

Data can be starting point for talks on what’s
reasonable, principal says

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by Chris Kenrick
oncerned about students’
workloads, Palo Alto High
School Principal Phil Winston this fall will deploy new
software aimed at getting objective data on the amount of homework, tests and activities students
are juggling.
The software, Rjenda, has
been used by some independent
schools, including Castilleja,
Sacred Heart, Woodside Priory,
Mercy High School in Burlingame and University High
School in San Francisco.
It allows teachers and administrators to enter assignments and
school events into a database and
ultimately creates a picture — at
the individual student level — of

C

File photo/Veronica Weber

Bowlers of all ages try their skills at Palo Alto Bowl in August 2009.
es. Since talk about the closure began surfacing around six years ago,
more than 5,000 Palo Altans and
others have signed petitions, joined
Facebook groups and protested the
decision at City Hall in vain.
Demolition was initially sched-

uled for last fall, but Barry Swenson Builder chose to postpone the
redevelopment and extend Smith’s
lease, citing economic constraints
on construction. According to Smith,
(continued on page 8)

workload and tests.
“So often we work anecdotally
— ‘My son or daughter spent ‘x’
number of hours on this assignment,’” Winston said in an interview this week.
“My hope is to provide Paly
and our community with some
data so we can start having conversations around what’s reasonable and what’s excessive.”
Rjenda describes itself as a tool
to “manage student workload and
stress.”
Founder and CEO Ranvir Wadera said his goal is to help teachers, students and parents “better
manage student workload and
(continued on page 10)

Sense
and
By Roger Parsley & Andy Graham
Based on the novel by Jane Austen
Directed by Robert Kelley
August 24 – September 18
Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts
GET TICKETS TODAY!
theatreworks.org 650.463.1960 650.903.6000

2011 New Works Festival
Runs thru 8/21 at the LUCIE STERN THEATRE, Palo Alto
For a full FESTIVAL SCHEDULE visit
www.theatreworks.org/about/new-works/festival
Page 4ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

All we’re looking for is parity.
—Jeff Selzer, owner of Palo Alto Bicycles, on
whether online retailers headquartered outside of
California should pay sales tax. See story on page 3.

Around Town
A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN ... With
the 100th anniversary of women’s
right to vote in California fast approaching, the League of Women
Voters of Palo Alto took time out
Tuesday evening to commemorate
the milestone at the Garden Court
Hotel. California’s men voted on Oct.
10, 1911, to give women their voting
rights, making the state the sixth in
the nation to approve, nine years
before the adoption of the federal
Nineteenth Amendment. According
to the League, Palo Alto had many
active suffragists: Virginia (Jennie)
Arnott, state auditor for the Equal
Suffrage Association; Mary Grafton
Campbell, organizer of the Woman’s
Club; Anita (Annie) Corbert, president of the local Political Equality
Club, which educated men and
women on the cause of women’s
suffrage; Anna Zschokke, another
co-founder and officer of the club;
Sarah Wallis, who held suffrage
meetings with leaders like Elizabeth
Cady Stanton at her Mayfield Farm
home; and Alice Park, an adept
publicist for the cause throughout
the world. Mayor Sid Espinosa was
invited to be the guest speaker
Tuesday night, and he admitted to
feeling “slightly uncomfortable” addressing the League on the topic,
given that (a) he is not a woman and
(b) he supposed that most in the
room knew the suffrage history better than he does and would always
understand the fight for women’s
equality better than he would. “But
alas, here I am. This is what you’ve
got,” he said, to laughter. Espinosa’s
talk, “Three revolutions and one
question,” touched upon the continuing fight for rights throughout
the world. Citing youth revolutions
in Tunisia and Egypt, which were
facilitated by social media such
as Twitter and Facebook, he said
that “courage, common cause and
teamwork” were clearly the most
important assets for the youth, as
they were for suffragists. And, he
predicted, technology will play a role
in advocating for women’s rights
around the globe. A video is posted
on www.PaloAltoOnline.com.
BLOODY GOOD ... Donating blood
is a way to give back to the community and maybe even help save a
life, but donors who give blood via
Stanford Blood Center during the

first two weeks of September will receive a bonus besides good karma
and brownie points: access to a
networking event for those seeking a new career. The Giving Blood
Works event, held Tuesday, Sept.
13, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at
3373 Hillview Ave., Palo Alto, will
feature Career Generations counselors, representatives from Foothill
College Career College Connection, individual resume critiques and
recruiters from institutions including
the Palo Alto Medical Foundation,
Option 1 Staffing and others. The
blood center hosted two identical drives in 2009, after it saw a
decline in blood donations due to a
decrease in workplace drives, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Spokesman John Williams said he
believes the center is the only one in
the world offering the program.
FREE FOR ALL ... Close to 88,000
people from more than 175 countries have expressed interest in
taking a free, online course, “Introduction to Artificial Intelligence,”
offered through the Stanford School
of Engineering. Even if they all ultimately register, there should be
no problem accessing the short
video lectures, according to Jamie
Beckett, director of communications and alumni for the School of
Engineering, because not all will
be “in class” at the same time. The
course, taught by Sebastian Thrun,
a Stanford research professor of
computer science and a Google
fellow, and Peter Norvig, Google
director of research, requires about
12 hours a week of reading, completing assignments and taking
quizzes and an exam, just like the
course aimed at Stanford students.
What students will lack will be oneon-one interaction with professors
— and a degree. Stanford is billing
the project as “an experiment that
could transform the way online education is delivered.” Another 31,000
have expressed interest in two other
computer-science courses, “Machine Learning” and “Introduction
to Databases,” which will also be
offered online. Classes start Oct. 10.
Students should have some knowledge of linear algebra and probability theory before taking the course,
Beckett said. N

Upfront
CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Federal grand jury indicts pair for mortgage fraud
Local mortgage broker, lender allegedly victimized
East Palo Alto residents as part of $40 million financial scheme
by Sue Dremann
San Jose mortgage broker
and a private lender who allegedly gave false information to banks that inflated potential
borrowers’ incomes, assets and employment in order to qualify them
for upwards of $40 million in loans
were indicted by a federal grand
jury in May, according to court
documents.
Among their victims were an East
Palo Alto homeowner and his brother, from whom the broker and lender
stole nearly $200,000, according to
a civil suit filed by the brothers.
Linda Dung Tran, 33, is accused
of 29 felony counts that include conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank
fraud, making false statements to a
bank, engaging in monetary transactions using criminally derived
property and aiding and abetting.
Pablo Curiel, 71, of San Jose is
charged with 17 counts that include
conspiracy to commit bank fraud,
bank fraud, making false statements
to a bank and aiding and abetting.
If convicted of all charges, Tran
faces a maximum of 760 years in

A

federal prison and more than $24.5
million in fines. Curiel faces 390
years in prison and more than $13
million in fines, according to the
indictment.
Tran and Curiel are accused of
being part of a group that included
Norma and Claudia Valdovinos,
agents at Century 21 Golden Hills
Realtors, and others that allegedly
defrauded a series of banks from
2005 to 2007.
The defendants’ scheme involved
kickbacks and secret down payments, all without the borrowers’
knowledge, according to the indictment. Upwards of $40 million in
loans were provided to buyers who
would not have received loans if not
for the defendants’ fraud, according
to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Tran allegedly paid Norma Valdovinos kickbacks to overlook
fraudulent stated-income information on the borrowers’ applications.
Tran also arranged for Curiel to provide down payments for the statedincome loans, the indictment stated.
But the down payments to the

UTILITIES

Palo Alto to shop around
for major electricity projects
City considers ways to use a $50 million reserve for
‘significant’ projects to benefit ratepayers
by Gennady Sheyner
alo Alto’s utility officials
have a pleasant conundrum
on their hands these days —
a $50 million fund that the city can
use to upgrade its transmission system, install smart meters or pursue
other “special projects” relating to
electricity.
The fund, known as “Calaveras
Reserve,” has been in place since
1983 and has undergone several
transformations, the latest of which
is now in the works.
The City Council launched the reserve to help pay off the city’s debt
for a new hydroelectric project. But
when state legislators passed a law
in 1996 deregulating the electric
industry and allowing customers to
choose their power supplier, Palo
Alto officials decided to use the
reserve to pay for electricity assets
that the city purchased but would
have a hard time supporting if it
were to lose customers to a competing utility.
By 1999, the reserve balance
reached $71 million, which was
deemed enough to cover the asset
costs, and the city stopped collecting funds, deciding it would draw
upon the reserve until it ran out in
2033.
In 2009, to address changing market conditions, the council approved

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new guidelines for the management
of the reserve.
Utility officials are still a long
way from determining what to do
with the $50 million, but early signs
indicate that these funds will not be
returned to the ratepayers who were
asked to chip into the fund but for
one or more long-term big-ticket
items.
The city’s Utilities Advisory
Commission agreed last month that
all of the Calaveras money should
be placed into a new “Electric Special Project Reserve” and used to
fund significant electricity projects.
Senior Resource Planner Monica
Padilla wrote in a report that top
candidates include smart-meter infrastructure; investments in local
power generation; and upgrades to
the city’s transmission-line connection (a subject of major interest since
a plane crash caused a citywide
power outage in February 2010).
The city may also use these funds
for energy-efficiency loans to businesses; exploration of “emerging
technologies”; and a new Utilities
Department building (in addition
to its City Hall location, the department occupies a portion of the city’s
dilapidated Municipal Service Center).
Commissioners John Melton and

banks were made in secret through
escrow companies with notes from
the borrowers, according to the indictment. Curiel thus secured the
loans through a deed of trust, which
he filed after the close of escrow so
the banks that were providing first
and second loans did not learn about
the third deed of trust.
Curiel and Tran made sure the
down payment was funded in a way
that disguised that the down payment was borrowed, according to the
indictment. Curiel allegedly charged
borrowers, including an East Palo
Alto family, Miguel and Rafael Cacho Vega, interest-only payments for
two years at 10 percent, plus a balloon payment of 110 to 125 percent
at the end of the 2-year term.
Financial institutions that were
defrauded included Greenpoint
Mortgage, Washington Mutual,
Countrywide Home Loans, National
City Bank and Downey Savings and
Loan, according to the indictment.
In the East Palo Alto case, Miguel
(continued on page 6)

William Berry both said they would
favor spending the money on an upgrade of the city’s transmission system. The city is currently connected
to the electrical-transmission grid
at the Colorado substation at 115
kiloVolts (kV), according to a staff
report. Upgrading the system to 230
kV “has the potential of saving up to
$5 million per year and improving
the city’s transmission service reliability.” Such an upgrade, however,
is estimated to cost more than $160
million, making it “economically
infeasible,” in staff’s opinion.
A cheaper option would be connecting to the 230 kV transmission
grid through SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory in the west side
of the city. Staff estimated that the
project would cost more than $40
million and could provide about
half of the city’s electric load. It
would, however, depend on interest
by Stanford and SLAC, according to
the staff report.
“If a transmission project was
available to us, it would be a worthwhile thing to do and it would reduce the future cost to ratepayers,”
Berry said at the July 20 meeting.
Not everyone agrees that the entire reserve should be dedicated to
major electricity projects. In deciding to use all $50 million in the Calaveras Reserve for such projects,
the commission rejected a Utility
Department suggestion to use half
of the reserve to support utility operations and help stabilize rates.
Utilities Director Valerie Fong
said at the July meeting that the
department made a “compact with
customers” about what the money
would be used for. Though the role
(continued on page 8)

Public hearing

Meeting compensation for calendar year 2012

You are invited
Topic:

Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of
Directors’ Consideration of Directors’ Meeting
Compensation Amount for Calendar Year 2012

Who:

The Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of Directors

What: Public hearing for the Board of Directors to consider
Directors’ meeting compensation amount for calendar
year 2012

The Board of Directors of Santa Clara Valley Water District will hold
a public hearing to consider the Directors’ meeting compensation
amount for calendar year 2012, and for the adoption of an
Ordinance providing for said meeting compensation amount.
At the time and place fixed for the public hearing, the Board of
Directors will receive comments relevant to the compensation of the
Directors. After considering all information presented, the Board will
consider one of the following options:
1. Keep the Directors’ compensation at the current amount of
$286.03 per meeting and day’s service up to 10 meetings a
month for calendar year 2012;
2. Reduce the Directors’ compensation to a specified amount below
the current $286.03 rate per meeting and day’s service up to 10
meetings a month for calendar year 2012; or
3. Approve an increase of up to five (5) percent in the Directors’
compensation for per meeting and day’s service (limit 10 meetings
per month) for calendar year 2012.
Reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate persons with
disabilities wishing to attend this public hearing. To request
accommodations for disabilities, arrange for an interpreter, or obtain
more information on attending this hearing, please contact the Office
of the Clerk of the Board at (408) 265-2600, ext. 2277,
at least three days prior to the hearing.
8/2011_GS

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Upfront
HEALTH

Medical breakthrough gives
resident back his life
Alfred Bostic is free of seizures
for first time in six decades
by Janelle Eastman

P

Does your student think

OUTSIDE
OF THE BOX?
ACCEPTING STUDENTS
INFORMATION
SESSION
with Doug Thompson,
INPh.D, Head of School

Cacho Vega, a tile setter, was referred by Century 21 Golden Hills
Realtors to Tran in 2006 to secure a
$20,000 loan to pay off credit-card
debts.
Tran agreed and told him that she
needed his brother Rafael to co-sign
the loan.
But instead of obtaining a
$20,000 loan, Tran allegedly
“sold” Miguel Cacho Vega’s home
to Rafael without either man’s
knowledge, according to the lawsuit filed by the nonprofit Community Legal Services in East Palo
Alto. She did so by taking out a
$675,000 loan from Downey Savings & Loan Association to pay off
Cacho Vega’s original home loan,
allegedly without his knowledge.
She obtained a down payment for
the Downey loan from Curiel for
$75,000. Curiel received a deed of
trust after the fact without the bank
knowing, then charged exorbitant
balloon payments to the Cacho Vegas, the indictment states.
Tran gave Cacho Vega the $20,000
he wanted, but took his name off the
title without telling him and pock-

English.
His passion for sports was never
dampened by his disability. In 1984,
Bostic competed in the Special
Olympics at UC Berkeley, where he
won the gold medal in shot put and
softball toss. He also competed in
volleyball, basketball and softball.
But epilepsy did interfere with his
ability to keep a job. Because Bostic
frequently had seizures at work, he
was laid off from Safeway in Menlo
Park after seven years, and later
from Walmart, he said.
“I was a good worker and everything, but they just didn’t want to see
me hurt myself,” he said.
Bostic’s seizures also caused lifethreatening injuries. In 2000 he collapsed and broke his neck. The following year another seizure caused
him to fall and re-injure his neck.
His final major injury occurred in
2005 after his head hit the ground
during a seizure, resulting in brain
contusions (bruises). The accident
also led to blood clots in his brain.
Since Bostic’s symptoms did not
respond to medication and his seizures occurred frequently enough
to impose on everyday life, Fisher
asked Bostic to consider surgery.
“I want to live my life like everybody else, so, yes, I wanted the surgery,” Bostic said.
According to Fisher, Bostic was
the perfect candidate, with a specific
and single focal point — the part of
the brain where seizures activate —

centered in the inner part of his left
temporal lobe. With multiple focal
points, removal is difficult and the
chances of complications increase.
“The removal of one temporal
lobe is (as) safe as removing one
kidney,” Fisher said.
Since his operation in August
2010, Bostic has been seizure-free.
He now works at Best Buddies, a
nonprofit that matches people with
Alfred Bostic recently underwent
surgery to relieve epilepsy
symptoms. Since the surgery a year
ago he has experienced no seizures.

eted $190,000, according to court
papers.
Cacho Vega lost the home to
foreclosure in 2008, the civil suit
alleged. (The Weekly published a
story about the Cacho Vega case on
June 26, 2009.)
Miguel and Rafael Cacho Vega
sued Tran and Curiel in December
2007 for fraud. A federal judge in
February 2010 awarded Miguel
Cacho Vega $136,942 and Rafael $30,000, plus $22,385 to both
brothers after Tran defaulted in their
cases.
Robert Kane, one of the Cacho
Vegas’ attorneys, said the brothers
have not yet received any compensation. Tran filed for bankruptcy
and the brothers could have to
wait until after the criminal trial.
If Tran and Curiel are convicted,
compensation could be a requirement of their sentence or any plea
deal, he said.
Similar cases involving Tran and
Curiel have emerged in federal
court.
In a separate civil case, 12 Latino
clients in San Jose were allegedly
similarly defrauded, according to a
lawsuit by the nonprofit Law Foundation of Silicon Valley and Greenberg Traurig, LLP, an East Palo Alto
law firm. The plaintiffs’ attorneys

declined to comment because the
case is still actively being litigated,
they said.
In another federal civil case filed
July 2, 2010, the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC), is
suing seven Latino victims of Tran
and Curiel — including Rafael Cacho Vega — for fraud along with
Curiel and Tran’s companies as a
result of the fraudulent loans taken
out on their behalf from the nowcollapsed Downey Savings & Loan
Association.
Kane said he was successful in
getting the FDIC to drop Cacho
Vega from the suit once a declaration was received that detailed how
he was misled.
The victims are from East Palo
Alto, San Jose, Santa Clara, Gilroy,
Newark and Beaumont (in southern
California), according to court papers.
Robert Carey, attorney for Tran,
said he could not comment on the
case because it is in litigation.
Tran conducted business as Absolute Investment Group, Palacio
Mortgage and Tara Home Financial
Services in San Jose. N
Staff Writer Sue Dremann can
be emailed at sdremann@paweekly.com.

intellectual and developmental
disabilities with employment and
leadership opportunities and with
friends and activity partners.
As director at the local branch of
Best Buddies, Bostic searches for
those who are interested in having
a “best buddy” volunteer to pair up
with. He’s been a member himself
for the past seven years, and Best
Buddies has given him the opportunity to go to numerous Stanford
sporting events and concerts.
Bostic said his mother, Marion
Bostic, considers him “a miracle
child.”
“My mother is very happy for me.
I live to witness that when prayers go
up, blessings come down,” he said. N
Editorial Intern Janelle Eastman can be emailed at jeastman@
paweekly.com.

Veronica Weber

alo Alto resident Alfred Bostic struggled with debilitating
epilepsy for 62 years — until
a single operation at Stanford exactly one year ago left him seizure-free
for the first time since infancy.
At just 8 months old, Bostic fell
ill with whooping cough, bronchitis and pneumonia, leading to a
12-hour coma. Though his doctor
called his survival from the coma a
miracle, Bostic said he was left with
significant brain damage, including
frequent epileptic seizures.
“Epilepsy is one of the most misunderstood diseases, with a certain
stigma attached to it,” said Dr. Robert Fisher, Bostic’s longtime neurologist and director of Stanford Hospital & Clinics’ Epilepsy Center. He
described an epileptic seizure as “an
electrical storm in the brain.”
According to Fisher, about 1 percent of the world’s population has
epilepsy. Two out of three of those
cases are controlled with a variety
of 20 different epileptic medications. But a third of patients, including Bostic, are resistant to the
medication.
Growing up in Philadelphia, Bostic suffered from seizures at least
once a week.
“I would shake and lose my
breath. Eventually, I just had to quit
school altogether,” he said.
Bostic later found success at an
adult school in San Jose in 1978,
earning As in math, history and

Upfront

Neighborhoods
A roundup of neighborhood news edited by Sue Dremann

AROUND
THE BLOCK

BARRON PARK/COMMUNITY CENTER

THE TREES AMONG US … Matt
Ritter, botany professor and author
of “A Californian’s Guide to the
Trees Among Us,” will be giving a
free tree talk at Gamble Garden,
1431 Waverley St., Palo Alto, on
Saturday, Aug. 20, from 9 a.m. to
noon. Ritter, who recently called
Palo Alto’s urban forest “the best
in the Bay Area for diversity and
maturity,” will talk about local trees
featured in his new book. Information: Space is limited, and RSVPs
can be made at http://canopytrees.
eventbrite.com/
IT’S C-O-M-I-N-G … Previewing this
year’s Great Glass Pumpkin Patch
is a Candlelight Cocktails benefit for
the Palo Alto Art Center Foundation (for Advocate-level members,
$250+) on Friday, Sept. 30, from 6
to 8 p.m. at Rinconada Park, 777
Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto. Specialty drinks and hors d’oeuvres will
be served courtesy of Four Seasons
Hotel Silicon Valley. Information:
www.paacf.org N
Send announcements of neighborhood events, meetings and news to
Sue Dremann, Neighborhoods editor,
at sdremann@paweekly.com. Or talk
about your neighborhood news on Town
Square at www.PaloAltoOnline.com.

Residents set up tents during the first Palo Alto “Quakeville” emergency-preparedness event, held at Juana Briones Park on Sept. 11, 2010.

Neighbors to host second annual disaster campout
Quakeville II drill to take place Sept. 10-11
in Briones and Rinconada parks
by Jeff Carr
his is it — the Big One. Bay
Area residents have been
anticipating the next major
earthquake for years, and according to Lydia Kou, a 7.2 shock will
hit Palo Alto on Saturday, Sept. 10,
in the mid-morning.
She’s speaking hypothetically,
of course. Kou is the organizer of
Quakeville, a grassroots disastersimulation drill aimed at promoting
emergency preparedness. Last year’s
pilot Quakeville was so successful
that Mayor Sid Espinosa called for
a repeat performance in his State of

T

the City address in January.
This year, Quakeville will take
place Sept. 10 and 11 and expand
to two sites in the city — Juana
Briones and Rinconada parks, said
Kou, a Barron Park resident.
As in 2010, the event will localize a major, real-life disaster. Last
year’s event followed the San Bruno
gas-line explosion and simulated a
neighborhood gas leak that occurred
after an earthquake; this year follows the Japan earthquake.
The tent city, which forms the
crux of the Quakeville experience,

will serve as a testing ground where
families can determine what their
specific needs would be in a real
disaster. Simulating a realistic scenario in which homes are destroyed
or inaccessible and highways are
closed, each household will bring its
own supplies and camp overnight in
a park along with other “victims.”
In this setting, families will be
naturally faced with a variety of
challenges, such as determining
how to keep children occupied and
corral pets. Others will face graver
questions, such as how to care for
a functionally disabled parent who
requires breathing help.
“Disasters don’t discriminate.
There needs to be more thought
given to what people will do in those

situations,” Kou said.
This year’s drill will be bigger
than in 2010 and include more organizations and emergency teams
working in a more coordinated effort. Palo Alto and Stanford residents will have a choice of two tent
cities to camp in, and they’ll also
benefit from educational stations
and exhibits put on by the Red Cross
and others, according to Kou.
Kou said she wants people to
know about local resources. She
also hopes that organizations, such
as the Red Cross and Palo Alto Animal Control, will find ways to combine efforts with one another.
The Palo Alto Police Department,
(continued on page 8)

MEADOW PARK

Talking with Henrietta
Award-winning journalist and Meadow Park resident Henrietta
Burroughs says communication is the key to community
by Sue Dremann
sk Henrietta Burroughs what makes
a neighborhood cohesive and invariably she returns to one word: communication.
An award-winning journalist and resident
of Palo Alto’s Meadow Park neighborhood,
she has garnered an Emmy in addition to
several other awards, and in late July she
won a national award for best informational
talk show from the Alliance for Community Media for her cable program, “Talking
with Henrietta.”
The program is produced by the Midpeninsula Community Media Center in Palo
Alto, which operates local channels 26

A
Veronica Weber

ARE YOU PREPARED? … The next
series of training classes for Block
Preparedness Coordinators begins
on Wednesday, Aug. 24, at 6 p.m.
at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation,
796 El Camino Real, Palo Alto (Jamplis Building, 3rd floor, Conference
Room AF). The evening begins with
an introduction to the program,
followed by 7 p.m. damage assessment and 8 p.m. communications
(participants are asked to bring an
FRS radio if possible). Cost is $5
for materials. Radio 101 Training
will be offered on Sunday, Aug. 28,
from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Creekside
Inn, 3400 El Camino Real, Palo Alto.
Taught by Lydia Kou and Palo Alto
police Officer Ken Dueker, the class
for Block Preparedness Coordinators will cover FRS radio basics and
will include an activation and drill
outside the classroom. (RSVP to
lkou@apr.com.) Information: www.
paneighborhoods.org/ep; email
RSVP to epvolunteers@paneighborhoods.org

Veronica Weber

PET FREEBIES … Goodies for
canines will be offered at “Responsible Dog Owners Day” on
Wednesday, Aug. 24, from 11 a.m.
to 3 p.m., at Palo Alto Animal
Services, 3281 E. Bayshore Road,
Palo Alto. In addition to booths
and free stuff for man’s best friend,
discounted on-site services will
be available, including rabies vaccinations for $6, American Kennel
Club microchips for $15, DA2PP
and Bordetella for $10. Information:
650-329-2413

Henrietta Burroughs stands next to a TV camera and
set, similar to what is used for her show, “Talking With
Henrietta,” at the Media Center.

through 30. Burroughs received the award
for an episode about strengthening the
bonds between fathers and children.
Burroughs’ folksy-titled cable show
belies the serious topics she has covered:
police use of Tasers, financial literacy and
payday lending, sexual assault, the foreclosure crisis, the dissolution of unions and
how cities can build healthy economies for
the future.
Burroughs has been involved in major
movements in communications since the
1970s, beginning as one of the early minor(continued on page 8)

*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU Page 7

Upfront

Palo Alto Bowl
(continued from page 3)

Aaron Barger at Swenson informed
her of the current timeframe “two or
three weeks ago.”
Barger said he now hopes to begin construction prior to the end of
the year.
At 4329 El Camino Real, nearly
halfway between Charleston and San
Antonio Roads, Palo Alto Bowl sits
on prime property. Though Smith
said the alley was and is financially
stable, the revenue from the center
simply hasn’t been enough for the
property owners to justify keeping a
sizable parcel of Silicon Valley land
wrapped up in recreation.
Since the owner of Mel’s in Redwood City decided to shut his doors
in May, the closure of Palo Alto
Bowl leaves the Midpeninsula without a single lane — a striking condition considering the former significance of the bowling alley within
American community life. Smith
said she doesn’t foresee a new center
opening anytime soon — available
land is too small and too expensive
— forcing local bowlers to drive to
Cupertino or San Mateo.
For many avid league bowlers, the
commute will be surmountable, if
inconvenient. High school students
will choose other activities.
But for others Sept. 16 represents
the final frame in a longer, more
meaningful game. Smith said that
Palo Alto Bowl is the only house in
the area that caters to special-needs
groups such as the Special Olympics
and blind and disabled veterans.
Smith became particularly agitated
speaking about the effects of the
closure on such groups.
“My veterans are more upset than
anybody,” she said. “They’re asking
me to do something, but what can
I do?”
Smith added that she has numerous regulars in senior leagues, including many in their 90s, who can’t
travel and will have to hang up their
shoes in September.
“One woman who has a solid 110
average just bowled a 201 the other
day. She was so happy,” Smith said.
Opponents of the closure have
cited the alley’s importance to
local special-needs and disabled
communities as among the primary justifications for its preservation. In an email to the Palo Alto
Weekly, Dan Mart, architect of the
“Save the Palo Alto Bowl” online
campaign, accused the City Council of “institutional discrimination
toward the disabled.” He also decried the loss of a locally signifi-

cant establishment that has brought
“character” to the city. Similar sentiments have been echoed throughout opposition efforts, which have
targeted not the developers but the
City Council, for voting for the redevelopment.
Smith, too, noted that she gets
along well with Barger and has no
animosity for Barry Swenson Builder or the property owners. But she
had hoped the city would step in.
More than 52 million U.S. adults
and almost 20 million children
bowled at some point last year,
making it the nation’s No. 1 sport
in terms of broad participation,
according to studies provided by
the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America. Bart Burger, vice
president of development for the association, said bowling stands out
because it has “very few barriers to
entry.”
However, he noted, while overall participation appear to be holding strong, the number of bowling
facilities in the U.S. has been in
steady decline for decades. At its
height in the 1960s, Burger estimated that there were 7,000 to
8,000 alleys in operation throughout the country. Now there are only
about 5,000.
A major contributor to the drop,
he said, is that many proprietors
who opened their alleys during the
bowling boom in the 1950s and ‘60s
have been unwilling or unable to
upgrade their facilities to compete
with larger family-entertainment
centers, which offer bowling along
with other amenities such as indoor
climbing and laser tag. Rising property values, an enticement to sell
properties, have also been a factor
in other areas.
Burger said family-entertainment
centers and smaller “hybrid” bowling centers that remove a few lanes
in order to offer other amenities,
may be the most viable means of
survival for alley proprietors.
Burger also said that something
must be done to compensate for a
major decline in organized league
play.
“Imagine a restaurant that had
guaranteed patrons for 30 weeks
straight,” Burger said. “Unfortunately, people aren’t making as
many long-term commitments like
that anymore.”
After the last pins drop at Palo
Alto Bowl, Smith said she’s not sure
what she’ll do. N

ity reporters at a time when national
television stations were looking to
engage in minority-represented
journalism. In 2003 she started
East Palo Alto Center for Community Media, which spearheaded
the creation of media outlets in the
underserved East Palo Alto community. That led to the founding of
East Palo Alto Today, the city’s first
continuously published newspaper
in 20 years.
A resident of Meadow Park since
1977, she served on Palo Alto’s Human Relations Commission in the
mid-1990s.
Regarding East Palo Alto, Burroughs said she thought she would
find a community that starkly contrasted with politically engaged Palo
Alto. But she found people in East
Palo Alto very much like her neighbors, she said.
“Palo Altans are very vocal and
involved in their community. Somehow I didn’t get that sense that that
exists on that level in East Palo Alto.
I was really surprised,” she said.
Burroughs wanted to give East
Palo Altans a way to have their issues and concerns represented in the
media from within their own community. She wanted to portray community life — its issues, successes,
innovations and cultures that make
the city a vibrant place, she said.
“There is so much energy that the
residents have in terms of improving their community — there are so
many positive things going on. You
would never get a feeling about that

Electricity projects
(continued from page 5)

of the reserve has changed, Fong
said she feels “obliged to return it
(the money) under the same intent
under which it was collected.”
The disagreement between staff
and the commission means that the
City Council will face two competing recommendations when considering the reserve’s new role in the
fall.
Commissioners John Melton and
Steve Eglash both opposed the staff
recommendation to split the Calaveras Reserve into two funds, with

(continued from page 7)

Fire Department, Special Weapons
and Tactics (SWAT) and Crime
Scene Investigation (CSI) teams
will also join in to test their own
procedures throughout the day, Kou
said.
But she stressed that in a real
disaster, response teams tend to
be stretched extremely thin, which
places the ultimate burden on individuals and families to prepare
themselves, she said.
After taking a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)
class, Kou and her husband, John St.
Clair III, became interested in how
residents could cope with disaster if
whole neighborhoods were to be displaced and emergency crews tied up.

reading about it in the news.
“I wanted to do more than just
cover the potholes and the fires —
where you could do something that
you could sink your teeth into,” she
said. In East Palo Alto, “I’m as close
as I could possibly get to doing what
I’ve wanted to do as a journalist.”
Burroughs said she realized immediately that to be part of a community means having and sharing
information.
“The importance of communication — you can’t very well build a
community, or at least the residents
can’t — without having adequate
information, truthful information.
How do you choose priorities? How
do you make the right choices of
those priorities, and how do you
know whom to elect?” she said.
Burroughs grew up in Washington,
D.C., the daughter of a homemaker
mother and a father who worked at
the U.S. Government Printing Office.
She attended D.C. public schools,
“where we were taught to compete
on anybody’s standards,” she said.
Her interest in journalism began
with the high school newspaper
and continued at Howard University, where she received an award
for “best newcomer” for her work
on the college paper, she said. She
earned a master’s degree in international affairs at Columbia University School of International and
Public Affairs and a certificate in
Broadcast Journalism from the Columbia University Graduate School
of Journalism.
Burroughs moved to New York
City for a United Nations-related job
and wrote for the New York Post in
the 1970s. She later worked as a tele-

vision news reporter and on several
news shows, including the “Evening
News” at WNBC TV and “The 51st
State” at WNET TV. She hosted a
weekly show, “Dateline New Jersey” and produced syndicated stories for Newsweek’s Broadcasting
Unit, she said.
As editorial director at KNTV in
San Francisco, she won an Emmy
more than a decade ago and a Golden Medallion for Distinguished Reporting from the California State
Bar Association. She also received
an honorable mention from the Alliance for Community Media for her
show about the late East Palo Alto
community activist David Lewis.
Her first foray into cable television began in 1996 while she was
a Palo Alto Human Relations commissioner. She and then-Palo Alto
Human Services Director David
Martin broadcast “Peninsula Currents,” which provided the public
with information about organizations in the city, such as nonprofits.
She began “Talking with Henrietta,”
in January 2002, she said.
But despite her dedication to journalism, she said some of the most
important news can’t be found in a
newspaper or on television. Sometimes, the most important news is
found on the street.
“I have a neighbor who recently
died. I didn’t know about it until
three weeks later when I was talking to a neighbor on the street. We
were talking about it, and we said
we didn’t know about it and we’re
right here,” she said. N
Staff Writer Sue Dremann can
be emailed at sdremann@paweekly.com.

Eglash saying that the money should
be spent on something major and
significant and not “dribbled away”
to cover operational costs.
“This is a substantial sum of money that we have here, and it’s a valuable resource,” Eglash said.
“Now is the time to take a real
step forward to decide how to use
it,” he added.
Eglash proposed a set of guidelines for determining how the money
should be spent. The funds he said,
should be used for major projects
(rather than operating costs) that
benefit electric ratepayers, that are
“worthwhile” (that is, they would be
worth doing even if the city didn’t

have the reserve fund) and that are
“impactful relative to the money we
have in the reserve.”
His colleagues on the commission
agreed, with Berry saying he would
like to see the funds used for “big
significant projects that have a lasting value for the utility.”
The council’s Finance Committee
is tentatively scheduled to consider
guidelines for spending the Calaveras Reserve funds in September.
The full council would then discuss
the Finance Committee’s recommendation in October. N
Staff Writer Gennady Sheyner
can be emailed at gsheyner@
paweekly.com.

“She saw a missing link, in that
there’s no preparation for residents.
The CERTs know what to do, but
nobody else does,” St. Clair said.
Kou has a deep passion to help
people and jumped at the chance to
join the Block Preparedness Coordinator program in their neighborhood, he said. She is also working
with the Palo Alto Neighborhoods
residential group to integrate plans
at the city level and came up with
the idea for Quakeville last year.
Last year’s event included a surprise search-and-rescue simulation,
prompting the tent city residents to
band together to locate a missing
and injured man. The lessons immediately became useful when a young
girl actually wandered off without
telling her family, only to be located
soon thereafter, she said.
Kou declined to comment on what

surprises might await this year’s
participants, but the unknown and
unanticipated will be part of the
event, she said.
“If you’re not going through the
actions, a lot of things never come
to mind. Last year, we had all of our
food, but no spatula. After that, we
put a spatula in our kit. It’s all discoveries,” she said.
Quakeville will begin at both
parks at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept.
10, and events will wrap up at noon
the following day. Those wishing to
camp overnight can pre-register by
contacting Lydia Kou at 650-9960028 or lkou@apr.com. Campers
can also do walk-up registration on
Sept. 10. N
Editorial Intern Jeff Carr can
be emailed at jcarr@paweekly.
com. Staff Writer Sue Dremann
contributed to this report.

Upfront

News Digest
PG&E begins Palo Alto pipeline project
The PG&E project to test gas pipelines in Palo Alto began with
staging and excavation last Thursday (Aug. 11) and will continue
through late September, according to the City of Palo Alto Utilities
department.
Gas-line segments T-29 and T-30 will be vented of unused gas in
order to conduct hydrostatic pressure-testing.
People in north Palo Alto and Menlo Park can expect to smell gas
on Friday (Aug. 19) when venting for pipeline segment T-29 will begin. T-29 stretches from Alma Street to Middlefield Road, with dig
sites located at 2573 Alma, 3672 Middlefield and 3860 Middlefield.
On Thursday (Aug. 25), hydrostatic testing of T-29 begins. Noise and
a slight smell may be noticeable near Oregon Expressway and Alma
Street.
Residents of south Palo Alto may notice a smell on Monday (Aug.
29) when segment T-30 will be vented. T-30 starts at the intersection
of Alma and Page Mill Road and continues up Page Mill to Foothill
Expressway. Dig sites are located at 650 Page Mill, 925 Page Mill,
the corner of Page Mill and Hanover Street and 500 feet north of the
intersection of Page Mill and Foothill. Hydrostatic testing of T-30
will begin Sept 5.
Hydrostatic testing subjects pipes to water pressure 150 percent
greater than the pressure allowed under normal gas use.
Tests will â&#x20AC;&#x153;validate a safe operating pressure for the pipelineâ&#x20AC;? and
ideally â&#x20AC;&#x153;reveal weaknesses that could lead to defects and leaks,â&#x20AC;?
PG&E officials said last month. Weakened pipes will be repaired or
replaced, the city stated. N
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Casey Moore

Woodland School
Building a Lifelong Joy of Learning.
Accepting Applications for Fall, 2011.

Corrections
The Aug. 12 story on Foothill College
incorrectly stated that the Palo Alto
Unified School District owns 8 acres
at Cubberley Community Center that
the college district was considering
buying. That land is owned by the
City of Palo Alto, although Foothill
currently leases Cubberley space
from both the school district and city.
To request a correction, contact Editor Jocelyn Dong at 650-223-6514,
jdong@paweekly.com or P.O. Box
1610, Palo Alto, CA 94302.

LETâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S DISCUSS:
Read the latest local news headlines
and talk about the issues at Town
Square at PaloAltoOnline.com

Preschool through eighth grade, Woodland Schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s focus is a challenging academic program with a strong enrichment program in the
areas of French, art, music, drama, computers, gymnastics and physical education. Science, math and technology are an integral part of
the 5th-8th grade experience.

Local STAR test results show mixed progress
Palo Alto students continued to score well while East Palo Alto
students showed mixed improvement on Californiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Standardized
Testing and Reporting (STAR) exams in English, mathematics, science and history.
The results, released Aug. 15, showed â&#x20AC;&#x153;steadyâ&#x20AC;? across-the-board
improvement for Californiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 4.7 million schoolchildren, with 54 percent scoring â&#x20AC;&#x153;proficient or aboveâ&#x20AC;? in English and 50 percent scoring
proficient or above in math â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the highest percentage since the programâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s inception in 2003.
Palo Alto students far exceeded state averages, with majorities scoring â&#x20AC;&#x153;advancedâ&#x20AC;? in many subject categories. But consistently, at least 5
percent of Palo Alto students were â&#x20AC;&#x153;below basicâ&#x20AC;? or â&#x20AC;&#x153;far below basicâ&#x20AC;?
in many of those same subjects.
School-by-school results are available at star.cde.ca.gov, the California Department of Education website.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not that much change in the results. I guess Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a little
disappointed because you always want to see improvement, but with
the gains we made last year this isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t surprising,â&#x20AC;? Palo Alto Superintendent Kevin Skelly said.
Students in East Palo Altoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Ravenswood City School District
showed mixed gains in some categories, including mathematics.
For example, 63 percent of fourth-graders scored â&#x20AC;&#x153;proficientâ&#x20AC;? or
â&#x20AC;&#x153;advancedâ&#x20AC;? in math in 2011, compared to 40 percent in 2010. And
only 16 percent of this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fourth-graders were â&#x20AC;&#x153;below basicâ&#x20AC;?
or â&#x20AC;&#x153;far below basicâ&#x20AC;? in math in 2011, compared to 31 percent in
2010. N
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Chris Kenrick

At ITP we are asking the important questions. Join us and earn your degree.

LETâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S DISCUSS: Read the latest local news headlines
and talk about the issues at Town Square at PaloAltoOnline.com

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The fines for texting on or holding a cell phone while driving in
California could get much steeper if Gov. Jerry Brown signs a bill the
California State Legislature passed Monday (Aug. 15).
Under Senate Bill 28, by Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), the cost
of a first offense would rise from roughly $189 to approximately $309
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; amounts vary slightly by county â&#x20AC;&#x201D; when penalties and fees are
included. The actual first-offense fine would be $50, up from the current $20. Subsequent offenses would cost $100, up from $50, and add
a â&#x20AC;&#x153;pointâ&#x20AC;? to the driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s record.
For the first time, the law would apply to cyclists as well, though
they would pay only $20 for a first offense and $50 thereafter, with no
added fees and no point added to their driving records.
Simitian is the author of three previous distracted-driving laws.
He said Monday that while the current hands-free phone laws are
working, a stronger law would increase compliance and decrease
the number of accidents, according to a press statement from his
office.
Data from the California Highway Patrol showed a drop of 40-50
percent in the number of distracted-driving accidents caused by use of
hand-held cell phones after the law went into effect in 2008. N
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Palo Alto Weekly staff

A preview of Palo Alto government meetings next week
CITY COUNCIL ... The council has no meetings
scheduled this week.
BOARD OF EDUCATION ... The board will discuss
Superintendent Kevin Skelly’s recommendations
for the district’s “focused goals” for 2011-12, with
an expected vote Sept. 13. The board also will hear
updates on the budget and the facilities bond construction program. Several newly appointed school
administrators will be introduced. The meeting
begins at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 23, in the board
room of school district headquarters (25 Churchill
Ave.)
PLANNING AND TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION
... The commission plans to discuss 195 Page Mill
Road, a request for a tentative map to create 84
residential units on two upper floors of a threestory building, including 17 below-market-rate units
and two common areas. The ground floor would
be used for research and development. The commission also plans to discuss parking management
strategies and topics for the joint City Council/Planning Commission meeting on Sept. 19. The commission will also select a new chair and vice chair.
The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. on Wednesday,
Aug. 24, in the El Camino Real Program Room of
the Downtown Library (270 Forest Ave.).

You Can: CHALLENGE s CHANGE s CURE

INFRASTRUCTURE BLUE RIBBON COMMISSION
... The commission will continue its discussion of
the city’s infrastructure backlog and ways to pay for
the items on the list. The meeting is scheduled for 5
p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 25, in the Lucie Stern Community Center (1305 Middlefield Road).

stress, and facilitate meaningful discussion
based on real data.”
The software allows teachers to see their
students’ schedules and workloads from other
classes, and students and parents to view their
assignments and tests.
Winston’s initiative at Paly coincides with
concerns about homework loads — particularly at the high school level — across the
school district.
A close look at homework policy is likely
to be recommended as a district-wide “focus
goal” for 2011-12, based on discussion at a
school board retreat this past June.
“We are working on the best way to develop
a homework policy — task force, principal
and teacher work first and then sunshining,
student input, etc.,” Superintendent Kevin
Skelly said this week.
Skelly is scheduled to present his recommended “focus goals” for 2011-12 at a board
meeting this coming Tuesday, Aug. 23, and a
board vote is expected Sept. 13.
At the June retreat, school board members
expressed concerns about “test clumping” —
the problem of exams from different classes
falling on a student at the same time.
Members said they may adopt a specific
district-wide homework policy as a nudge to
drive change.
But board member Dana Tom warned that,
“If it feels like a top-down directive, you
won’t get much compliance (from teachers).”
At the time, Skelly said the faculties at
Paly and Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle
School already had taken steps to examine
homework policy.
To launch its partnership with Rjenda, Paly

has turned over test data from last year, Winston said.
“We’ve exported it, and they’re going to
input it so we can see what students’ lives
looked like last year,” he said. “It’s pretty
revolutionary.”
Winston acknowledged that, so far, Rjenda
depends on teachers and administrators to enter data on tests and assignments.
“In math, everything gets inputted — it gets
pulled out of the grade book,” he said. “If
you’re an English teacher, it might be when
an essay was due. The system takes it and
presents it in a simple, colorful way.
Winston said he plans to ask his department
heads to use Rjenda “live” this year.
“As they’re moving through the year they’ll
input when they’re giving assignments, and
we’ll get a glimpse of what students’ lives
look like. It won’t be a full picture.
“It would be cool if we asked students how
much time (assignments) actually took them
on task. Rjenda is interested in this.”
At Castilleja, Rjenda has been used by
teachers since 2009 “for major assessment
scheduling, to reduce conflicts for students
throughout the academic year,” spokeswoman
Dana Sundblad said.
“The idea is to reduce stress and create a
more balanced workload calendar for the girls
by allowing faculty to see what’s been scheduled by others and to collaborate on gradelevel (especially in middle school) scheduling
more easily,” she said.
The company, which Wadera launched in
2008 after working at Oracle, Business Objects and Hyperion Solutions, charges an
annual subscription based on the number of
students and size of school. N
Staff Writer Chris Kenrick can be emailed
at ckenrick@paweekly.com.

Amazon protest
(continued from page 3)

school programs and shrinking class
sections in all grade levels from kindergarten to college, he said.
Clark Kepler, owner of Kepler’s Books
and Magazines, said his 56-year-old
business nearly closed six years ago because it couldn’t compete with Amazon.
Kepler’s was brought back to life because
the community rallied on its behalf.
There needs to be a mind shift if
people want local retail to survive, he
said. Retail businesses will gain some
advantage against online sales “when
people start to think of themselves as a
resident of a community rather than as
a citizen alone.
“We’re asking residents not to sign
Amazon’s petition,” he said.
Selzer of Palo Alto Bicycles said:
“All we’re looking for is parity.”
Amazon could not be reached for comment, but Paul Misener, Amazon’s vice
president of public policy, was quoted in
the Wall Street Journal as saying: “This
is a referendum on jobs and investment
in California. ... At a time when businesses are leaving California, it is important to enact policies that attract and
encourage business, not drive it away.
Amazon looks forward to working again
with tens of thousands of small business
affiliates in California that were harmed
by the new law’s effect on hundreds of
out-of-state retailers.” N
Staff Writer Sue Dremann can be
emailed at sdremann@paweekly.
com.

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Train with us
for the Las Vegas

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,EARN MORE AT AN
INFORMATION MEETING
Monday, August 22
6:00pm
Road Runner Sports,
San Carlos
Thursday, August 25
6:00pm at
Tied House Brewery,
Mountain View
*OIN US FOR A FREE DRINK
AT THE 4IED (OUSE

These and other news stories were posted on Palo Alto Online throughout
the week. For longer versions, go to www.PaloAltoOnline.com/news
or click on â&#x20AC;&#x153;Newsâ&#x20AC;? in the left, green column.

Teacher to become administrator at JLS
Pier Angeli La Place, who has taught in Palo Alto schools for more
than 20 years, will become assistant principal of Jane Lathrop Stanford
Middle School, the district announced. (Posted Aug. 17 at 9:07 a.m.)

Atherton set to hire firm to outsource services
The town of Atherton is poised to hire Interwest Consulting Group
to provide services now performed by its building department staff, a
move Interim City Manager John Danielson says will save the town
more than $350,000 in the current fiscal year. (Posted Aug. 17 at 8:34 a.m.)

Mountain View police investigate burglaries
There is as yet no evidence indicating that any of the four burglaries
reported Friday (Aug. 12) in Mountain View are related, police said.
However, investigators have not ruled out the possibility that some of
the crimes might be connected. (Posted Aug. 17 at 8:19 a.m.)

Man sought after suspicious Woodside incident
Authorities are looking for a man a sheriffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s deputy discovered pushing buttons on a call box at the gate of a residence on Mountain Home
Road in Woodside Friday (Aug. 12). The suspect drove off, crashed
through fences, and escaped on foot. (Posted Aug. 17 at 8:13 a.m.)

Menlo Park gets two congressional districts
The city of Menlo Park will have two representatives in Congress
when the June 2012 election rolls around, a distinction shared with 35
of the approximately 1,050 cities and towns in California. Ten others
will have more than two representatives. (Posted Aug. 16 at 9:17 a.m.)

Mountain lion spotted near Old La Honda Road
A mountain lion was spotted walking near the 400 block of Old La
Honda Road in Woodside around 9:15 p.m. Monday (Aug. 15), San
Mateo County emergency officials said. (Posted Aug. 16 at 8:16 a.m.)

VIDEO: Palo Alto Obon Festival
The Palo Alto Buddhist Temple celebrated the Obon Festival for the
63rd time last weekend. Events included a musical performance by
members of the temple, dancing, martial-arts demonstrations and an
outdoor bonsai exhibit. (Posted Aug. 12 at 1:26 p.m.)

Credit Union banking on East Palo Alto
When San Mateo Credit Union opens a branch in East Palo Alto
at the end of this year, residents will get a financial institution with
experience serving low-income communities with high immigrant
populations, Stephen Tabler, vice president of marketing, said. (Posted
Aug. 12 at 12:26 p.m.)

)
./
0 1

Two arrested for possession of graffiti contraband
Two men with vandalism histories were arrested Thursday morning
(Aug. 11) in Palo Alto in connection with graffiti tagging. Richard
Holmes, 21, of Palo Alto, and Viliami Taipaletti, 20, of East Palo Alto,
were arrested in the 200 block of Sheridan Avenue near Park Boulevard after police stopped their SUV for a vehicle violation at 12:30
a.m., police stated in a press release. (Posted Aug. 12 at 9:35 a.m.)

Drug bust in East Palo Alto nets three arrests
Police arrested three men in East Palo Alto Thursday night (Aug. 11)
in a search of a home that yielded a stash of cocaine and other elicit
drugs as well as a large sum of cash. (Posted Aug. 12 at 8:42 a.m.)

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NOTICE OF A PUBLIC MEETING
of the Palo Alto
Planning & Transportation Commission
Please be advised the Planning and Transportation Commission (P&TC)
shall conduct a public meeting at 6:00 PM, Wednesday, August
31, 2011 in the El Camino Real Program Room, Downtown
Library, 270 Forest Avenue, Palo Alto, California. Any
interested persons may appear and be heard on these items.
Staff reports for agendized items are available via the Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main
website at www.cityofpaloalto.org. and also at the Planning Division
Front Desk, 5th Floor, City Hall, after 2:00 PM on the Friday preceding
the meeting date. Copies will be made available at the Development
Center should City Hall be closed on the 9/80 Friday.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Draft Report for the Bicycle and
Pedestrian Transportation Plan 2011 has been prepared by the
Palo Alto Department of Planning and Community Environment,
Transportation Division. This document will be available for review
and comment during the period beginning July 26, 2011 through
September 7, 2011, and is available online at:
www.cityofpaloalto.org/bike
An online comment form is available to provide immediate feedback.
Comments may also be submitted via email at transportation@
cityofpaloalto.org.
Printed copies of the Draft Report are available for review during the
hours of 8:00 A.M. to 12:00 noon and 1:00 P.M. to 4:00 P.M., at City
Hall, 5th Floor, 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto, California. Additional
copies will be made available at the Downtown Library and the
Cubberley Community Center Library.
This Report will be considered at a public hearing by the Planning and
Transportation Commission on Wednesday, September 14th, 2011
6:00 p.m. in the Palo Alto City Council Chambers on the ďŹ rst ďŹ&#x201A;oor of
the Civic Center, located at 250 Hamilton Avenue, Palo Alto,
Curtis Williams,
Director of Planning and Community Environment
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, listening assistive
devices are available in the Council Chambers and Council Conference Room.
Sign language interpreters will be provided upon request with 72 hours advance
notice.

NEW BUSINESS.
Study Session:
1. Joint Session with the Infrastructure Blue Ribbon Commission
(IBRC) to receive Planning & Transportation Commission input on
infrastructure needs and priorities prior to the publication of the IBRC
ďŹ nal report.
2. Regional Water Quality Control Plant Landscaping Project
(RWQCP): Request by Public Works Division for review of the
proposed conceptual landscape plans for the exterior perimeter and
interior areas of the water plant.
3. Request by the City Public Works Solid Waste Division for review of
proposed improvements to the Household Hazardous Waste DropOff Station adjacent to the Regional Water Quality Control Plant
zoned PF(D).
4. Request by City of Palo Alto Public Works Engineering for a review
of the Feasibility Study and the preferred option for an overcrossing
of Highway 101 at Adobe Creek.
Questions. For any questions regarding the above applications, please
contact the Planning Department at (650) 329-2440. The ďŹ les relating
to these items are available for inspection weekdays between the
hours of 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. This public meeting is televised live on
Government Access Channel 26.
ADA. The City of Palo Alto does not discriminate against individuals
with disabilities. To request accommodations to access City facilities,
services or programs, to participate at public meetings, or to learn
more about the Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s compliance with the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (ADA), please contact the Cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ADA Coordinator at
650.329.2550 (voice) or by e-mailing ada@cityofpaloalto.org.

Deaths
Robert Beuttler
Robert Beuttler, 90, a resident of
Menlo Park, died Aug. 6, 2011. He
was born in San Francisco, attended Palo Alto High School, San Jose
State College and was graduated
from UC Berkeley in 1942 with a
degree in political science. Shortly
after graduation he was hired by
United States Steel Corporation,
where he rose to a management
position in the company’s sales
department in late 1948. Unfortunately, the company was forced
to make some untimely “organizational changes” and he found himself having to take a forced vacation after just a few months in his
new position. Making the best of a
bad situation, he decided to see the
world. He boarded a tramp steamer
headed for Buenos Aires, Argentina, via the Panama Canal. He
wound up in Cruz Chica, Argentina, a small town on the eastern
edge of the Pampas, working as
a soda jerk in an ice cream parlor
while he courted the woman who
would become his wife whom he’d
met while staying at the hotel that
was owned by her parents.
After they married, Bob and
Diana traveled to England where
he landed a job working at the
Headquarters of the Third U.S.
Air Force in South Ruislip, Middlesex.
In 1954, in the process of returning to the Bay Area, they traveled
across the U.S. by train. After
working several jobs on the Peninsula, he ended up at Stanford
Research Institute, now SRI International, where he worked as a

compensation administrator for 30
years and 30 days until he retired
in 1990.
After he retired, he enjoyed taking walks around his neighborhood
and chatting with his neighbors as
well as traveling around the U.S.,
England and Argentina with his
wife. He also bowled regularly at
the Palo Alto Lanes until after his
90th birthday, when his declining
health finally forced him to stop.
He is survived by his wife of
60 years, Diana; his son Jeremy
Beuttler of El Dorado Hills, Calif.;
and his daughter Cynthia Ishler of
Park River, ND. Donations in his
memory may be made to Pathways
Hospice Foundation, 585 N. Mary
Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94085.

Roger Nelson
Roger Nelson, 72, a resident of
Palo Alto, died Aug. 11, 2011.
He was a resident of the seniorliving facility Vi at Palo Alto.
He is survived by his wife, Rosalie Nelson of Palo Alto; sister Linnea of Minneapolis Minn.; brother
Ray of Minneapolis, Min.; and
brother Willard of Denver, Colo.
He also had many nieces, nephews
and great-nieces and nephews.
His primary career was spent
with Utah International (later
BHP) in a variety of environmental
management positions.
Memorial services will be held
at Newark Community church,
Newark, Calif., Aug. 20, and in
Annandale, Minn., Aug. 27.
In lieu of flowers, donations
may be made to CaringBridge.org,
Mount Hermon Christian Conference Center or Newark Community Church.

Carolyn K. Spiegel
After valiantly battling a rare and aggressive
type of uterine cancer for over a year Carolyn
Kommel Spiegel died peacefully at home in
Menlo Park on August 5, 2011.
Born on September 22, 1942 at Edgewood
Arsenal in Maryland where her father,
Sanford Kommel, was stationed as an officer
in the Chemical Warfare Service of the 3rd
Army, Carolyn and her brother Bob grew up
in New York City with their mother, Charlotte
Daniels Kommel. She graduated from
Flushing High School and received a B.A.
in French from the University of Wisconsin.
She was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship and
attended the Sorbonne – University of Paris.
Her next accomplishment was a four year
National Defense Education Act Doctoral
Fellowship at Stanford University.
Carolyn had a highly successful forty year
career teaching French at various levels to
thousands of students, many of whom called
her “the best teacher I’ve ever had.” She began
by teaching at the City University of New
York but returned to California and taught at
several schools before settling in at Foothill
College. One of her greatest achievements
was the creation of a live and interactive
French Conversation class which she led over
television for Stanford University.
Active in the local Jewish community,
Carolyn served as president of the South
Peninsula Hebrew Day School PTA and on the
Boards of Directors of the Bay Area Council
for Soviet Jews and the Sequoia Chapter of
Hadassah. She was a frequent volunteer in
various capacities at Congregations Beth Jacob
and Kol Emeth. As an activist in the struggle
for freedom for Soviet Jews she and husband
Phil traveled to the former Soviet Union in
1985 and 1987 to meet with refuseniks and
bring them material and spiritual support in
their struggles to emigrate.
Carolyn’s first bout with cancer occurred
in 1990 when she developed throat cancer
and required daily radiation therapy for two
years. She inspired the medical staff and
other patients by riding her bicycle from her
home in Los Altos to El Camino Hospital.
She became an active participant in rides
with the Western Wheelers Bicycle Club and
completed many100 kilometer rides as well as

bicycle tours through
France and around
Hawaii. Combining
her loves of French
and bicycling she
gave classes in
French conversation
especially “geared”
for cyclists who were
going to ride in France.
Madamevelo (Mrs. Bicycle) became her
nickname and email address and also the
name of her Care Page for blogging about
her cancer treatment and condition when she
began chemotherapy for uterine cancer last
year. Over 120 friends and family members
have been reading her updates and in their
nearly 2000 messages of support they
frequently admired her joie de vivre and
remarked how courageous and inspiring
Carolyn has been. While in chemotherapy
last July Carolyn served as a cycling
course marshal for the Lance Armstrong
Foundation’s Livestrong Challenge in San
Jose. She rode 30 miles that day!
Carolyn has loved being a grandmother to
Sylvia (3 years old) and Ari (17 months), the
children of her daughter, Deborah, and sonin-law Matthew Glenn who live in Portland,
Oregon. She is also survived by her loving and
devoted husband of 31 years, Philip Spiegel
and his sons, Ralph Spiegel and wife, Laura
Marsh, of Philadelphia, and Michael Spiegel
and wife, Amity Spiegel and grandson Cole
Spiegel of Brooklyn. Other survivors are her
brother, Robert Kommel of New York, and
her sisters Jane Stoval of Sacramento, Laura
Farmer of Crystal Lake, Illinois, and Helene
Kommel of Kingston, Ontario, as well as
many beloved nieces, nephews and cousins
in North America and Israel.
A service at Congregation Kol Emeth in
Palo Alto was held Sunday, August 7 preceded
burial at the Eternal home Cemetery in
Colma.
In lieu of flowers the family asks that any
donations be made to Congregation Kol
Emeth,
www.kolemeth.org or the Sequoia Chapter
of Hadassah, http://sequoia-hdassah.org.
SINAI MEMORIAL CHAPEL 650-369-3636.
PA I D

O B I T UA RY

*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU *>}iÊ15

Sports
Shorts
RESEARCH AND RUNNING . . .
Stanford grad Spencer Castro was
named UC Merced’s first cross
country team. The 22-year-old Castro will also conduct interdisciplinary
research with faculty in the Cognitive
and Information Sciences program
in the School of Social Sciences,
Humanities and Arts. “The hurdles
we’re facing now are setting precedent and tradition,” Castro said. “We
want to be an example to the Cal
Pac even though we’re a brand new
program. We want to set things to
a higher standard.” He worked with
high school athletes at Stanford’s Nike
Camp of Champions.

OAKS CORNER . . . Palo Alto High
grad Evan Warner had three hits and
Jeff Ramirez drove in four runs but the
Palo Atlo Oaks fell to the Northwest
Wildcats, 10-9, in the championship
semifinal game of the Stan Musial
World Series in Houston on Saturday
night.
COURT CASE . . . The U.S. Mens
Team, which features Stanford grads
Kawika Shoji, Brad Lawson and
Cardinal junior Erik Shoji fell to Thailand, 25-15, 23-25, 25-19, 25-23 on
Wednesday at the World University
Games in Shenzhen, China, and
lost the chance to play for a medal.
The U.S. plays for ninth-place Friday
against Japan.

READ MORE ONLINE

www.PASportsOnline.com
For expanded daily coverage of college
and prep sports, please see our new
site at www.PASportsOnline.com

Palo Alto grad Teresa Noyola and Castilleja grad Lindsay Taylor have played with or against each most of their lives. They hope to win a national
title together as seniors at Stanford.

Looking to make their own kind of music
Stanford opens season at No. 2; hopes to end it at No. 1
by Rick Eymer
here’s been some talk among
Stanford women’s soccer players about forming a musical
group to entertain themselves during the season. There’s even a name
for the group should it come to pass:
‘Soccapella.’
Palo Alto grad and Stanford senior Teresa Noyola would love that.
She’s proficient at jazz drums and
the guitar and there’s a video circulating of her singing.
Castilleja grad Lindsay Taylor and
fellow senior Lindsay Taylor has yet
to hear Noyola, but she’s pretty sure
her teammate is still better at soccer
than singing.

T

From all accounts Noyola is a
pretty good musician, so her soccer
abilities have to be right up there
with the best.
Well, for starters, she is a twotime first team All-American, and
she joined teammate Alina Garciamendez on Mexico’s national team
that played in the World Cup this
past summer.
While at Palo Alto she was named
the national Player of the Year, by
two different publications. So, yes,
she has the soccer credentials. But
what of her musical ambitions?
“I’m playing guitar mostly right
now,” Noyola said. “It’s a little
easier. I’d like to get back to the

drums.”
Noyola is encouraged by the addition of freshman Alex Doll, a talented forward out of Bethesda, Maryland. Doll was also a jazz drummer
at Chevy Chase High and Noyola
has thoughts of jamming with her
dancing through her head.
There are other talented musical
types scattered among the Cardinal
roster. Junior midfielder Mariah
Nogueira gets rave reviews and junior forward Marjani Hing-Glover
sings Opera.
“There’s a lot of us who like to
pretend we can sing,” sophomore
goalkeeper Emily Oliver said. “We’d
had some pretty sessions. We have

quite the array of musical talents.”
They also have quite the array of
talented soccer players. Noyola and
Taylor have been on three consecutive Final Four teams, the last two
years reaching the championship
match. They’d love to go the extra
foot or so to win it all.
“It’s our last year and there’s a
different feeling,” Taylor said. “We
definitely want to win a national
championship but I wouldn’t call it
an expectation. We work hard, we
have talented players and we strive
to do well. We know we have to
work for it. I’d call it more a drive.”
(continued on page 18)

WORLD UNIVERSITY GAMES

DiRado solves swimming
puzzle, earns an ‘Au’
Stanford sophomore turns summer season
into international sensation
by Rick Eymer
aya DiRado knows a thing
or two about chemistry.
She can tell you what the
chemical symbol ‘Au’ means, for
example, and how to obtain it. She
also understands team chemistry
and how to draw support from a
teammate.
On the first point, DiRado knows
you just don’t go out mining for it
without the proper techniques and
tools. It takes hard work, determination and pushing through the hard
times.
Her efforts paid off Tuesday when
the Stanford sophomore earned her

M

Page 16ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

first international gold medal at the
World University Games in Shenzhen, China by winning the 400 individual medley in a time of 4:40.79,
and helping the United States pad its
medal count.
“The race went pretty much the
way I expected it,” DiRado said. “In
the freestyle I felt pretty strong coming home and I had enough left in
the tank.”
Stanford senior Bobby Bollier
also made a trip to the awards stand,
earning an ‘Ag’ with his secondplace finish in the 200 IM. Stanford
(continued on next page)

Richard C. Ersted

WATER WORKS . . . The Stanford
men’s water polo team was picked to
finish third in a vote of the Mountain
Pacific Sports Federation this season.
The Cardinal open at the UC Irvine
Invitational on Sept. 4 . . . Stanford
grad Drac Wigo scored three goals,
including a critical penalty shot, to
help Team USA beat Hungary, 8-7, at
the World University Games in Shenzhen, China and qualify for Friday’s
quarterfinals. Cardinal grad Sage
Wright added two goals. The Americans plays Spain for a chance at the
semifinals.

Rick Bale/Stanford Athletics

TWIN OAKS . . . Menlo College
junior Chris Mazza became the first
Menlo College player to be taken in
the First-Year Major League Draft in
June. On Tuesday, he became the
first to sign a professional contract,
officially becoming a member of the
Minnesota Twins organization. “It was
unbelievable because my dream was
finally coming true,” said Mazza. “I am
now a professional baseball player.”
Mazza was 3-4 with nine saves and
a 2.73 ERA for the Oaks this season.
He led Menlo to the Southern Division championship of the Cascade
League, earning the team its first ever
trip to the postseason. He struck out
28 in 29 2/3 innings. Mazza also hit
.337 with five home runs and a teambest 41 RBI.

Stanford sophomore Maya DiRado followed an impressive performance
at the U.S. Nationals two weeks ago with a gold medal in the 400 IM at
the World University Games in Shenzhen, China on Tuesday.

FIVB WORLD PRIX

USA women’s volleyball team looks
to start another winning streak
tanford grads Foluke Akinradewo and Logan Tom, and
the rest of the United States
women’s national volleyball team
look to get back on the winning
track after absorbing its first loss
of the FIVB World Grand Prix on
Sunday, something it had not experienced in 16 previous World Grand
Prix matches dating to last year.
The U.S., ranked second in the
FIVB world ranking, entered the
final match of Pool H against Serbia with a 5-0 record after beating
NORCECA rival Dominican Republic, 25-22, 25-22, 25-10, and host
Japan, 25-22, 25-14, 25-18, over the
weekend.
Serbia, team the Americans beat
the first week of preliminary play,
came out fired up.
“As always, we are trying to get
better and Serbia taught us a few
things” U.S. coach Hugh McCutcheon said.
The Americans are in Hong Kong
this weekend to continue pool play.
The U.S. plays Germany, Italy and
Peru. The matches, as well as the

S

first six matches held in China and
Japan, can be viewed online at universalsports.com.
“Now we have to get the ball rolling again,” U.S. Women’s National
Team captain Jennifer Tamas said.
“We will go to Hong Kong and try
to play better volleyball.”
Team USA is in third place in the
FIVB World Grand Prix standings
through the second preliminary
round weekend. Russia (18 points,
6-0 record) leads the 16-team tournament, followed by Brazil (18
points, 6-0). Italy ranks fourth (13
points, 5-1 record), behind the U.S.,
while Serbia (13 points, 4-2) moved
up into fifth place after its win.
Germany (4 points, 1-5) is currently
13th in the standings, while Peru (0
points, 0-6) is in 16th place looking
for its first set or match victory.
The top seven teams in the preliminary round standings plus
China advance to the FIVB World
Grand Prix Final Round to be held
Aug. 24-28 in Macau, China. With
three matches left in the preliminary
round, only China, as the host, has
clinched a spot in the Final Round.

Through the second weekend,
United States’ Destinee Hooker
ranks as the fifth-best scorer in the
event with 93 points (77 kills, 12
blocks, 4 aces). Foluke Akinradewo, the 2010 FIVB World Grand
Prix MVP, is tied for 21st in scoring
with 73 points (48 kills, 21 blocks,
4 aces). Heather Bown ranks 34th
with 60 points (42 kills, 14 blocks,
4 aces), and Megan Hodge is in 37th
with 58 points (45 kills, 3 blocks,
10 aces).
Hooker ranks ninth in Best Spiker with a 40.53 kill percent, while
Hodge is 12th in the same category
with a 39.13 kill percent. Akinradewo holds a 59.26 kill percent
on 81 attempts which would lead
all players, but does not meet the
FIVB minimum requirement. Akinradewo has just under 13 percent
of the Americans’ attacks, with the
minimum being 15 percent.
The U.S. has three of the top 20
blockers in the tournament. Akinradewo ranks fifth in Best Blocker
with 1.00 blocks per set, while
Bown averages 0.67 per set for 13th
place. Hooker is ranked 19th with a

Courtesy of FIVB

Americans want to defend Grand Prix title
by Bill Kauffman

Stanford grad Foluke Akinradewo attempts to block a Serbia attack
during the Americans’ four-set loss last weekend. The loss ended a 16match winning streak for the U.S. in the Grand Prix.
0.57 block average.
Jordan Larson leads the Best
Server category with a 0.57 service
ace average based on 12 aces in 21
sets played by the U.S. Hodge has
added a 0.48 service ace average for
third place. Despite playing in only

Swimming

YOUTH BASEBALL

(continued from previous page)

Avis makes the list
of top pitching prospects
Boyd also participates in Area Code Games
Richard C. Ersted

grad Kate Dwelley also won a gold
medal for her participation in Team
USA’s record-setting 800 free relay
(7:55.02) on Wednesday.
Stanford swimmers Andie Taylor,
Felicia Lee and David Mosko each
competed in a championship final.
Taylor finished sixth in the 400
IM in 4:46.40 and DiRado credited
her for raising the level of competition.
“I train with Andie so I know that
she’s a really great butterflyer and
she always pushes me,” DiRado
said. “She’s a great breaststroker
and she always goes out faster than
me. I knew I had a lot of catching up
to do in the freestyle but that’s kind
of been my strong part in the 400
IM so I have a lot of confidence in
the last part.”
DiRado hasn’t quite decided her
area of concentration for her academic studies at Stanford. She likes
chemistry though and will maybe
find a career related to it.
“Chemistry is something I am excited about,” DiRado said. “I don’t
know how it will translate into a career. For now I’m just picking things
that interest me.”
So far, so good. The Santa Rosa
resident has found the right formula
for success in the pool and it could
lead to the Olympics in London next
summer.
“I’ll keep training well,” she said.
“The training at Stanford has really
worked well for me this year and I
had a great time at school. So, hopefully, I will get stronger and faster
and give it a run.”
DiRado shrugged off a disqualification in the 200 IM the previous
day to earn her first international
gold medal.
DiRado, the Pac-10 Freshman of

five of the six matches so far, Lindsey Berg is ranked sixth in Best Setter with a 6.71 running set average
on 386 total set attempts.N
Bill Kauffman is an Associate
Director of Communications for
USA Volleyball

Stanford senior Bobby Bollier placed second in the 200 fly, less than
two weeks after winning the U.S. title in the same event.
the Year, recorded the world’s 10th
fastest time in the event (4:37.88)
with her inspired swim at the U.S.
Nationals meet in Avery Aquatic
Center two weeks ago.
DiRado, a five-time All-American, finished in the top five of three
individual events and swam on two
relays for Stanford at this year’s
NCAA meet. She has the secondbest time in school history in the
200 back and the third best in the
200 IM and 400 IM.
In China, DiRado came in with
the best time from prelims and improved on that by nearly five seconds in the final. She finished 1.5
seconds faster than second place
finisher Miho Takahashi of Japan.
Bollier went 1:56.06 to finish second in the men’s 200 fly at the World
University Games on Sunday.
“I’m happy to be here,” Bollier
said. “It’s my second time competing
but the last time I was hurt and it was
very rough. This time I was healthy
so I could see what I could do.”
Bollier, who won a national title
in the event at Stanford less than
two weeks ago, improved his time
by nearly 50 seconds from his USA
championship time of 1:56.54.
Hungary’s Laszlo Cseh won the

fly with a time of 1:55.87.
“I want to be a world class swimmer and I’m hoping to improve on
those final; five or 10 meters,” Bollier said. “I need to finish the race
strong.”
On Monday, Dwelley finished
fifth in the 100 free, Mosko was
seventh in the 800 free and Stanford grad Elizabeth Smith finished
12th in the 200 IM with a time of
2:17.42.
Dwelley and Lee were part of the
U.S. 400 free relay that finished second with a time of 3:40.19. Australia
won the race in 3:40.03.
Lee was eighth in the 100 fly
Wednesday with a time of 1:00.58.
Mosko placed fifth in the 400 free
in 3:53.80
The Americans held a slim lead
after three legs of the relay before Aussie Marieke Guehrer took
charge on the final leg.
Lee also finished seventh in the
50 fly, going 27.07.
Stanford junior Curtis Lovelace
had the 15th-fastest time of the
day (1:02.52) in the 100 breast and
Cardinal sophomore Matthew Swanston, competing for Canada, was
18th in the 50 back with a time of
26.53. N

by Palo Alto Weekly Staff
enlo School senior Freddy
Avis ranked eighth among
the top Area Code baseball
pitching prospects in the final ratings as selected by a committee that
used a similar criteria used by the
nearly 500 pro scouts and college
coaches in attendance.
Evaluation included velocity, arm
action, body type, command, and
body language among other points.
The list was announced Friday. The
Area Code Games came to a conclusion on Wednesday.
A total of 35 pitchers were named
to the list of prospects. HarvardWestlake senior Lucas Giolito, who
committed to UCLA, topped the
list.
Avis, who was named one of two
“Jose Bautista ‘Beastmode’ Award
winners early in the competition,
topped out at 94 miles an hour.
Avis, who pitched for the Oakland A’s during competition, earned
his award after pitching the A’s to
an 8-0 victory over the Washington Nationals at Blair Field in Long
Beach.
Palo Alto High’s B.J. Boyd also
played for the A’s. Boyd and Avis
were named to the team following a
tryout at Banner Island Park in Stockton, home of the Class A Ports.
Avis was the hardest throwing
pitcher at the tryouts, topping 90
consistently.
Avis also threw an 84 MPH slider
and used a 75 MPH curve to freeze a
batter for a called third strike.

M

“I was rushing a little bit warming
up because like a lot of guys, I was
nervous,” Avis told ESPNRise. “A
couple of the coaches came up to me
and told me to slow down my delivery. I did and I think that helped my
velocity.”
Avis, who verbally committed to
Stanford shortly after the A’s tryout
July 6, pitched two innings allowing
one hit while striking out three of
the six batters he faced.
“I felt great out there,” he said. “I
was loose with a little bit of butterflies, but that’s to be expected in an
event like this. I wanted to concentrate on throwing strikes because
in these things you never want to
throw balls. Also, it was important
for me to mix my speeds because
in a showcase like this guys can hit
the fastball.”
Avis went 10-1 with a 2.39 ERA
and hit .459 as a junior to help the
Knights win their second straight
Central Coast Section title.
He was named to CalHiSports.
com first team All-State Underclass
honors.
“Freddy did give Stanford a verbal
commitment in July and plans on
accepting a scholarship and signing
a letter of intent with the Cardinal in
November,” Menlo School baseball
coach Craig Schoof confirmed in an
e-mail. “Freddy will be the seventh
Menlo alum to play for the Cardinal
during my tenure as coach (Dave
Cornell, Jimmy Noreiga, Ryan Seawell, Kenny Diekroeger, Danny
Diekroeger, Jack Mosbacher). N

*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU Page 17

Sports

Soccer

(continued from page 16)

Rick Bale/Stanford Athletics

Stanford senior Teresa Noyola is a returning two-time first team All-American. She was also the National
Player of the Year her senior season at Palo Alto High.

Rick Bale/Stanford Athletics

Castilleja grad Lindsay Taylor, a returning All-American, said there’s a different feeling being a senior.
Stanford has reached the Final Four in each of her first three years.
Page 18ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

Stanford (23-1-2 last year) opens
its season Friday with a 7 p.m. game
against visiting Penn State. The Nittany Lions won the Big 10 Conference last year.
The Cardinal seniors enter their
final year with an overall 70-4-3
record, by far the most prolific of
any class. Until they were freshmen,
Stanford has reached the Final Four
once -- in 1993.
Taylor is another returning AllAmerican, as is Courtney Verloo
and Nogueira. Noyola and Garciamendez were named to Soccer
America’s preseason All-American
team.
Junior Rachel Quon is
another topnotch defender
who should get
some attention
for postseason
honors and senior Camille
Levin may be
the most ver- Camille Levin
satile player in
the country.
Stanford played with the nation’s
top two players in Kelley O’Hara
two years and Christen Press last
year. Without those dynamic scorers, the Cardinal will be looking for
a variety of ways to put the ball into
the net.
“Maybe the thing that has changed
the most is we’ll have a more balanced attack,” Stanford coach Paul
Ratcliffe said. “We may not have the
same goal scoring punch Christen
gave us but we have a lot of players capable of scoring. We have to
find the right internal leadership
that will, hopefully, propel us to the
Final Four again.”
Garciamendez served as one of
the team captains last year and she’s
in the mix again this time around.
There are, however, nine players on
the roster who have appeared in two
national championship matches and
that’s valuable experience whether
they are vocal leaders or not.
“There is a tremendous amount of
experience,” Ratcliffe said. “Teresa
has always been a leader on the field
and Alina is a special player. They
carry themselves so well. Those
kind of players are critical to our
success. Rachel Buehler (now with
the national team) has an incredible
work ethic, drive and perseverance.
You want that kind of leadership to
continue. You can demand all you
want but if the players demand it
of each other, it becomes a special
team.”
It’s not just about the starters
either. Ratcliffe is quick
to point out
players like
senior Kristy
Zur muhlen,
juniors Nina
Watkins, Lindsay Dickerson
and Madeliene
Thompson and
redshirt sopho- Emily Oliver
more Annie Case are also part of the
process that makes it all special.
Last year’s highly-regarded freshmen class returns with postseason

experience. It was a group that
produced major contributors like
Oliver, Sydney Payne, Shelby Payne
and Annie Case.
Redshirt sophomore Aly Gleason,
Natalie Griffin and Taylor McCann
also return with valuable playing
time and can help another talented
group of freshmen assimilate with
the team.
Redshirt freshman Kendall Romine, one of the more coveted players
of her class, adds that much more
depth to a group that includes Doll,
Hannah Farr, Lo’eau LaBonta,
Haley Rosen, Lauren Schmidt and
Chioma Ubogagu, a Soccer America Freshman of Influence.
“Chioma is a dynamic attacking
player with great speed and skill,”
Ratcliffe said. “She has the ability
to beat defenders one-on-one and is
a proven goal scorer.”
Ubogagu was born in London
and moved to the USA, with family,
when she was three years old.
Noyola joined the Mexican national team for the first time. Garciamendez is a veteran.
“Not just playing in the World
Cup, but training with Mexico was
great,” Noyola said. “They play a
different style than I am used to, so
it helped me become more effective.”
Without Press, Noyola is also
aware that others will need to step
up, beginning with her.
“I know I need to score more than
I did last year,” she said. “Those are
big shoes to fill and we’ll need to
find goals from different people. It
will make the team more balanced.
I do feel different about goal scoring
and being a leader.”
Verloo may become the ‘X’ factor in Stanford’s season. Where she
plays, as a defender or as a forward,
may be Ratcliffe’s biggest decision.
An effective scorer when she arrived at Stanford, she became an
All-American as a defender.
“I really like Courtney in both
places,” Noyola said. “We can utilize her on top, but she will be good
either way.”
It’s a decision Ratcliffe doesn’t
mind making, and will likely change
as the season evolves.
“You can never say one player
makes the team,” he said. “It’s quite
a challenge. My goal is to just get
better every day, every game.” N

‘Bloom’ “Bloom” is a new exhibition by
Cubberley artists curated by Elise De
Marzo. Through Aug. 31, 1 p.m. Free.
Palo Alto City Hall. cubberleyartists.
com/
‘Monuments of Printing’ “Monuments
of Printing: from Gutenberg to the Renaissance,” the first of two exhibitions
spanning 500 years of printing history, demonstrates the development
of printing in Europe over a 250-year
period as seen in selected works in the
rare book collections of the Stanford
University Libraries. Through Nov. 27,
10 a.m.-6 p.m. Closed Sundays. Free.
Green Library Bing Wing, Stanford
University. Call 650-725-1020. library.
stanford.edu/depts/spc/exhibits/MonumentsofPrintingOne.html

Family and Kids

‘Culture, Crafts & Curry’ “Culture,
Crafts & Curry” theme featuring curry
booths and tastings, cooking demonstrations, Bhangra music and more.
Aug. 21, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Free. Courthouse Square, 2200 Broadway, Redwood City. www.redwoodcity.org/
events/targetfamilydays.htm
Hogwash Storytime A farmer, his pigs
and a lot of mud are featured in this
pig-themed storytime. Aug. 21, 11:30
a.m. Free. Kepler’s, 1010 El Camino
Real, Menlo Park. Call 650-324-4321.
www.keplers.com
Open House@CSMA Get to know the
Community School of Music and Arts
(CSMA) at Finn Center. Tour the facility; learn about the music and art programs; meet faculty and staff; see art
class and music-instrument demos;
watch visual and digital-art presentations; listen to live performances;
refreshments and more. Aug. 21, 10
a.m.-1 p.m. Free. Community School
of Music and Arts at Finn Center, 230
San Antonio Circle, Mountain View.
www.arts4all.org

Film

Rolling with the times
Baby carriages like this were thoroughly modern in the 1800s. A
current exhibition at Palo Alto’s Museum of American Heritage
focuses on this and other “high-tech” items of Victorian America
from 1837 through 1901, including the phonograph, the typewriter
and the telephone. This was truly a time of innovation for the young
country, museum executive director Gwenyth Claughton said. The
free exhibition is open through Nov. 6 at 351 Homer Ave., from 11
a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Go to moah.org or call 650321-1004.

‘Gnomeo and Juliet’ Atherton Library
will be showing “Gnomeo and Juliet”
as its Final Friday Flick for August.
Doors open at 6:45 p.m. Refreshments
provided by Friends of the library. Aug.
26, 7-8:30 p.m. Free. Atherton Library,
2 Dinkelspiel Station Lane, Atherton.
Call 650-328-2422. smcl.org
‘Ingredients’ See how people around
the country are working to revitalize
the connection between the food produced and the food eaten. Films of Vision and Hope film series, sponsored
by Vision and Hope, World Centric,
Transition, and Slow Food South Bay.
Aug. 26, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Free. World
Centric, 2121 Staunton Court, Palo
Alto. transitionsiliconvalley.org/
‘Mary Poppins’ From the moment
Mary Poppins floats into the Banks’
household, things are never the same.
The children, Jane and Michael, are
swept into magical romps across the

CALENDAR LISTINGS
For complete Calendar listings
or to submit a Calendar listing, go to
www.PaloAltoOnline.com
and click on “Master Community Calendar”
For News submissions for possible use elsewhere
in the paper, e-mail editor@paweekly.com or call (650) 326-8210
www.PaloAltoOnline.com

‘The Art of Culture’ Philein/ZiRu productions will host a free event in preparation for its upcoming season of “Zero
Hour,” Philein Wang’s latest dance theater production that explores ChineseAmerican cultural duality. Free arts and
crafts, as well as dance lessons. Aug.
20, noon-4 p.m. Free. Mountain View
Center for Performing Arts Park Stage,
500 Castro St., Mountain View. ziruproductions.com/
Victorian Days Visit local historical
groups, children’s crafts, and live theater performances. The play “Love &
Marriage: Victorian Style” based on relationships on the Peninsula in 1880s,
will be performed in Courtroom A at
12:30 and 3 p.m. Aug. 21, 11 a.m.-4
p.m. Free. San Mateo County History
Museum, 2200 Broadway, Redwood
City. Call 650-299-0104. www.historysmc.org

Talks/Authors

‘College 101: Miss Independent’s
Guide to Empowerment, Confidence,
and Staying Safe’ Kathleen Baty discusses and signs her guide to personal safety on campus. Aug. 25, 7
p.m. Members free. General admission requires purchase of event book
or a $10 gift card. Kepler’s, 1010 El
Camino Real, Menlo Park. Call 650324-4321. www.keplers.com/event/
kathleen-baty
Ellen Sussman Inspired by the time Ellen Sussman spent living in Paris, the
novel “French Lessons” follows three
Americans as they spend a single day
exploring the City of Lights with French
tutors, learning about language, love
and loss. Aug. 20, 3-5 p.m. Free.
Downtown Library, 270 Forest Ave.,
Palo Alto. Call 650-329-2436. www.
cityofpaloalto.org/library
Lev Grossman’s ‘The Magician King’
Lev Grossman presents his newest
fantasy book, “The Magician King.”
Aug. 24, 7 p.m. Members free. General
admission requires purchase of event
book or a $10 gift card. Kepler’s, 1010
El Camino Real, Menlo Park. Call 650324-4321. www.keplers.com
The East Palo Alto Youth Court This
presentation will be on Youth Courts in
the U.S. with the specific example of
East Palo Alto Youth Court, how it was
started and where it is now. Speaker
Professor Sally Stewart, microbiology,
Stanford University, was one of its
founders. Aug. 21, 11 a.m. Free. Palo
Alto High School - Student Center, 50
Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto. www.
humanists.org
Women’s International League for
Peace and Freedom The local WILPF
will discuss the “War on Women” from
a UN perspective. Opening and closing songs by Raging Grannies, and a
display about domestic violence. Aug.
28, 11 a.m. Free. Palo Alto High School
- Student Center, 50 Embarcadero
Road, Palo Alto. www.humanists.org

*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU *>}iÊ19

Worth a Look

Scheduled for two performances this weekend
is “Little Rock,” a “play
with music” by Rajendra
Ramoon Maharaj, who is
also directing. It tells the
story of the nine black
teenagers who integrated
Little Rock Central High
School in 1957. Maharaj
is the founder and artistic advisor of the River
Voices theater festival for
African-American and
Latino playwrights, held
at the Arkansas Repertory
Theatre.
Remaining “Little
Rock” performances are This photo from Albania is among the images shot by Menlo Park photographer
set for Aug. 20 at 2 p.m. Frances Freyberg on her recent travels.
and Aug. 21 at 7.
For more information, go to her travels to Albania, Macedonia,
Lois Lowry’s futuristic novel “The
oakcitybarandgrill.com or call 650- Bulgaria, Chile, New Zealand and
Giver” is the inspiration for a new
Africa.
321-6882.
musical with music by Scott MurNow she plans to have the prophy and book and lyrics by Nathan
ceeds from the show travel far and
Christensen. The popular author
wide as well. She’s directing profits
describes the book on her website
from the sales of the Portola Art
as a “haunting novel in which a boy
Gallery show to Nuru International,
Ellen
Sussman
inhabits a seemingly ideal world,”
a social venture that seeks to ease
One
day
in
Paris.
How
would
you
one without poverty or unemployextreme poverty by helping the poor
spend
it?
ment, but also without rebellion or
in various countries to become fiIn
Los
Altos
Hills
writer
Ellen
nonconformity. “The Giver” will be
nancially self-sustaining.
Sussman’s
novel
“French
Lessons,”
read Aug. 21 at 2 p.m.
Programs include training people
three
Americans
each
pass
the
sultry
Also scheduled for the weekend
on planting and sanitation techsummer
hours
discovering
the
city
are Colman Domingo’s dark family
niques. The organization was foundcomedy “Wild With Happy,” Aug. with a French tutor.
ed by Stanford Business School
One
is
a
young
teacher
mourn19 at 8 p.m.; and the Joe Tracz play
graduate Jake Harriman.
ing
the
death
of
a
lover;
another
is
a
“Up North,” about a mother searchFreyberg, whom the Weekly prolonely
expat
housewife;
and
the
third
ing a forest for the ghost of her son,
filed
in 2009 after she took a year off
is the husband of a big-name actress.
Aug. 20 at 8 p.m.
to travel and photograph the world,
Each
also
takes
a
walk
of
self-discovAll festival events are at the Lucie
focuses on color portraits of people
Stern Theatre at 1305 Middlefield ery through Paris.
and wildlife. Her current show also
A masked Michael Gene Sullivan plays President Obama in the San
Sussman,
also
an
essayist,
shortRoad in Palo Alto. Tickets are $29
includes flower photos from the
Francisco Mime Troupe’s production of “2012 — The Musical!”
for “Little Rock” performances and story writer and frequent judge in
Filoli and Allied Arts Guild gardens
the
Weekly’s
annual
short-story
conNow in its 10th year, the summer $19 for others. Go to theatreworks.
test, lived in Paris for five years. On here on the Peninsula.
festival gives audiences the chance org or call 650-463-1960.
The show runs through the end of
Saturday, she’ll be here in Palo Alto
to see plays and musicals while
the
month at the gallery in Allied
speaking about her new book. She’s
they’re still being revised and reFree mime
Arts, 75 Arbor Road, Menlo Park.
scheduled
to
give
a
free
talk
from
3
to
Summertime mime is coming up written. Audience members also get
5 p.m. Aug. 20 in the program room Open hours are Monday through
on Sept. 1, when the San Francis- to contribute their own feedback.
of the Downtown Library at 270 For- Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Go
Kaye Bohler
co Mime Troupe makes one of its
est Ave. The event is sponsored by the to portolaartgallery.com or call 650pilgrimages down the Peninsula to
Band
321-0220.
Friends of the Palo Alto Library.
give a free outdoor performance at
The blond-ringleted
For more information, go to
Palo Alto’s Mitchell Park.
blues belter Kaye Bohler ellensussman.com.
The troupe, which is actually
is bringing her band to
REGISTER NOW!
quite noisy in the tradition of the
Menlo Park next weekCity of Palo Alto
Recreation Presents
snarkiest satirical theater, is putting
end for a show at the
27th Annual
on its original “2012 — The MusiOak City Bar and Grill.
PALO ALTO WEEKLY
cal!” The story centers on a small
The singer/songwriter
MOONLIGHT
political-theater troupe that is grapwho sometimes bills Photos for a cause
Menlo Park photographer FranRUN & WALK
pling with the question of whether to
herself as “The White
continue its biting satirical producTina Turner” has been ces Freyberg brought back many
FRIDAY
SEPTEMBER 9
tions (that don’t make any money)
performing for 25 years of the images in her current exhior to sell out by telling corporateand has released four bition from locations thousands of
www.PaloAltoOnline.com
funded tales.
CDs, the most recent miles away. Most were taken during
“Is it better to be a little capitalcalled “Like a Flower.”
ist and alive, or Red and dead?”
Bohler has sung
A&E DIGEST
the mime troupe asks in a press rerhythm and blues for
CALLING BAY AREA PLAYWRIGHTS ... Palo Alto’s Dragon Productions
lease.
years, and has more
Theater Company is seeking submissions of full-length plays for a new
The performance will take place
recently branched out
festival. During the festival, scheduled from April 17 to May 6, the plays will
on the park’s South Field at 600 E.
into jazz and contemhave one staged reading a week, with the playwrights given the chance to
Meadow Drive, with music starting
porary music. She has
“fine-tune” their works in between readings. Writers must be from the Bay
at 6:30 p.m. and the show at 7. A
performed regularly at
Area and submit via email at scripts@dragonproductions.net, with a $5
Sept. 14 show is also planned on
Oak City, which has a
reading fee per script. The submission deadline is Nov. 30. For more inforRedwood City’s Courthouse Square
full music calendar that
mation, go to dragonproductions.net.
at the same times. For details, go to
often features jazz.
sfmt.org or call 415-285-1717.
The band will begin
PWC PRIZE ... The Palo Alto-based Peninsula Women’s Chorus has tied
playing at 8:30 p.m. on
for second place in the American Prize in Choral Performance competiAug. 26 at the restaurant
New Works Festival
tion. The contest is run by a Connecticut nonprofit, with conductor and
at 1029 El Camino Real
The closing weekend of Thecomposer David Katz its chief judge. About 20 community choruses
in downtown Menlo
atreWorks’ New Works Festival
participated, he said. The Seattle Pro Music chorus tied for second place,
Park. Late-night dinner
includes a play with music about Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj is director
while the Pacific Lutheran University Choral Union in Washington won first.
is served until 11 p.m.
the 1957 integration of Little Rock and playwright of “Little Rock,” an inDetails are at americanprize.org.
Central High School, and a musical development play with music being performed on Fridays, with the bar
open until midnight.
this weekend at the Lucie Stern Theatre.
based on a novel by Lois Lowry.

Books

Fletcher Oakes

Theater

Music

Art

Page 20ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

Local Deals

Good for Business. Good for You.
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offers, events and marketplace items from
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When you shop locally, good things happen to make
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t And when you shop at locally owned
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donating to community events and causes,
hiring our kids and getting involved in making
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Palo Alto Eyeworks
Learn more about the value
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Available in a mobile version
*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU *>}iÊ21

â&#x20AC;&#x153;EVERY

SINGLE MINUTE OF THIS
MOVIE
IS HILARIOUS.â&#x20AC;?
Cole Abaius/FILM SCHOOL REJECTS

Movies
OPENINGS

One Day -1/2

CHECK LOCAL LISTINGS FOR THEATERS AND SHOWTIMES

â&#x20AC;&#x153;AN EPIC
MUST-SEE
ROMANCE!â&#x20AC;?
â&#x20AC;&#x153;ONE OF THE
MOST ANTICIPATED
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;I LOVE THIS MOVIE!

Intelligent, sensitive and full of heart!â&#x20AC;?

Twenty years.
Two people...

One Day
Anne Hathaway/Jim Sturgess

(Century 16, Century 20) Like so many pictures
about love, the romantic drama â&#x20AC;&#x153;One Dayâ&#x20AC;? seems
to take place in an unrecognizable alternate universe, albeit a boring and annoying one.
The one day in question is St. Swithinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Day,
July 15. On July 15, 1988, sensible working-class
girl Emma Morley (Anne Hathaway) and obnoxious, well-off Dexter Mayhew (the overestimated
Jim Sturgess) graduate from the University of Edinburgh and, finding themselves otherwise alone,
wind up making a dash for the bedroom despite
being considerably less cozy than two peas in a
pod.
And hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s where â&#x20AC;&#x153;One Dayâ&#x20AC;? runs off the rails.
As the two attractive youngsters undress, Emma
asks, â&#x20AC;&#x153;So what will you be, when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re 40?â&#x20AC;? Who
does that? (His answer, by the way: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Be reckless!
Live for the moment!â&#x20AC;?) Even if you accept the line
as an expression of Emmaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s social awkwardness
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and, perhaps, part of the reason why the pair
doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t actually do the deed â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the line is a bluntly
clumsy signal of where the film intends to take us
over the next 100 minutes.
For â&#x20AC;&#x153;One Dayâ&#x20AC;? reunites us with Dex and Emma
repeatedly on July 15s, between 1988 and 2006.
Yes, these are the days of their lives (if not exactly
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Same Time Next Yearâ&#x20AC;?). So we will inevitably
find out exactly what Dex will be when heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 40.
But by then youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be long past caring. For
the filmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annoying artificiality comes with no
compensatory effervescence, a requirement of a
romantic picture. Instead, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s near impossible to
sympathize with Dex (a sexually voracious, selfish, superficial jerk) or Emma (the woman who
loves him) as the BFFs sniff around each other
for decades.
Like the considerably more charming â&#x20AC;&#x153;Starter
for 10,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;One Dayâ&#x20AC;? has been adapted by David
Nicholls from his own novel. But the prevailing
artistic force here is director Lone Scherfig, and
her treatment of the material is so much bourgeois
tastelessness (beginning with the comically oversized credits, which will have you wondering if
you somehow picked up the large-print edition).
Scherfig goes straight for romance-novel fantasy:
Do not pass Reality; do not collect $200. In what
universe, you may ask, do two people not gain an
ounce of fat over 20 years? (Hathaway only gets
more attractive, in fact.)
â&#x20AC;&#x153;One Dayâ&#x20AC;? delivers not one, but two phony accents, Hathawayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and that of Patricia Clarkson,
cast as Dexâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ailing mother. In one of the filmâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
most puzzling scenes, Dex demonstrates the height
of his callousness by going to see his mother, then
sleeping through the whole visit (thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an intimation he may be on drugs, but thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s never made
clear). When even the audience canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t see anything
in him, Emmaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s abused-puppy love for him only

seems more absurd.
The scene when Emma not so finally lays it on
the line presumably is meant to trigger excitable
clapping, but Dex will take quite a bit longer to
get his act together, and by then youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll wonder
if redemption was wasted on him. These characters must be better rounded on the page, but the
screen Dex is a vocation-less fool, and Emma,
so much his better, is a sucker to pine for him.
Worse, Scherfig screws up big-time by telegraphing the romantic dramaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s clichĂŠd climax, a final
insult that leadens the whole mess with unearned
weight.
Rated PG-13 for sexual content, partial nudity,
language, some violence and substance abuse.
One hour, 48 minutes.
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Peter Canavese

Conan the Barbarian -

(Century 16, Century 20) Let us pause to reflect
on the resurgence of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Râ&#x20AC;?-rated movie, 1980s
variety. In recent years, raunchy sex comedies and
gory slasher films have become not uncommon
again, but action films have, for the most part,
remained resolutely PG-13, the better to draw in
younger audiences. If one is to say anything in
favor of the new â&#x20AC;&#x153;Conan the Barbarianâ&#x20AC;? reboot,
itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s that someone â&#x20AC;&#x201D; presumably director Marcus
Nispel â&#x20AC;&#x201D; insisted on an â&#x20AC;&#x153;Râ&#x20AC;? rating.
This should come as no surprise, since Nispel basically made his name on horror reboots
(â&#x20AC;&#x153;Friday the 13th,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Texas Chainsaw Massacreâ&#x20AC;?), and his new sword-and-sorcery outing
is ultraviolent, no question. But the beheadings
and skewerings and noggins cracked open like
coconuts (all with festive blood or brain-matter
splatter in weak-tea 3D) here share the frame with
action sequences that wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t look out of place
in PG-13 fare like â&#x20AC;&#x153;Robin Hood,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Mummy,â&#x20AC;?
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Pirates of the Caribbeanâ&#x20AC;? and â&#x20AC;&#x153;Indiana Jones and
the Temple of Doom.â&#x20AC;?
Unfortunately the new film compares unfavorably to any of these predecessors and, more to the
point, the 1982 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Conan the Barbarian,â&#x20AC;? starring
Arnold Schwarzenegger and scripted by John Milius and Oliver Stone.
Milius and Stone took a more serious, if not
exactly reverent, approach to Robert E. Howardâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
original pulp stories and their mythical fantasy
universe, whereas the new â&#x20AC;&#x153;Conanâ&#x20AC;? is crass, witless and literally laughable, approached solely
as a product and with no seeming aspiration to
genre artfulness. The new â&#x20AC;&#x153;braintrustâ&#x20AC;? of writers
(Thomas Dean Donnelly, Joshua Oppenheimer
and Sean Hood) is not to be trusted, and Jason Momoa, as Conan, makes the directorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s job a hope(continued on next page)

lessly uphill battle. Momoa, also a
model, proves that heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more of a
poser than an actor: Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a cocked
eyebrow, a squinty tic and an assortment of bulges in search of a
performance.
As narrator Morgan Freeman
informs us, Conan is â&#x20AC;&#x153;a child born
of battleâ&#x20AC;? into â&#x20AC;&#x153;a time both bleak
and brutal.â&#x20AC;? In the absurd opening
movement, Cimmerian boy Conan
proves his mettle to his father (Ron
Perlman) by taking on several
adult enemy natives (for some reason emitting loudly mixed animal
growls). Conan begins to learn the
ways of the warrior and attempts
to become worthy of the sword,
but dad gets himself slain by magic-power-hungry warlord Khalar
Zym (Stephen Lang of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Avatarâ&#x20AC;?)
and his sorceress daughter (Rose
McGowan, sporting the latest in
Freddy Krueger finger claws from
the Barbarian Hot Topic), triggering a revenge-driven plot once Conan grows up to have pecs.
So this â&#x20AC;&#x153;Conanâ&#x20AC;? is one part hero
myth, one part fantasy with supernatural magic, and several parts
â&#x20AC;&#x153;that guyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s evil and deserves to
die, preferably by being hacked

to bits with this big sword.â&#x20AC;? There
are sidetracks establishing the
Hyborian Age anti-heroâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rep as
a thief, and what will go down in
history as the funniest love-scene
break ever to blight a movie, precipitated by Conanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s apparently
catnip catch-phrase â&#x20AC;&#x153;I live, I love,

We’re looking
for community
video
journalists!
Palo Alto Online is looking for residents interested in joining our team in
covering community issues and events on video.

Citizen Video Journalist Academy
starts September 10th

ROAD RACE SERIES

RUN, HAVE FUN & JOIN US
FOR THE 2011 SEASON

We’ve partnered with the Media Center and are offering a four-week
Citizen Journalist Academy to teach video production and reporting
skills, after which you should be ready to produce videos for community
access television and PaloAltoOnline.com. Hands-on classes begin
Saturday, Sept. 10, and continue with Tuesday evening sessions
(6:30-9:30 p.m.) on Sept. 13, 20, 27 and Oct. 4 and Saturday morning
sessions (9:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m.) on Sept. 17 and Oct. 1.
It’s open to anyone over age 16. You will learn to use video cameras,
audio equipment and how to edit video on the computer. You’ll also learn
how to plan and produce video segments. Participant fee is $250.

MARCH 12

Once you complete the program, you’ll become a Community
Correspondent, be eligible to use Media Center video equipment and
produce and submit videos to Palo Alto Online. You’ll join Palo Alto
Online’s team of online video correspondents who cover community
events, conduct interviews and produce short video features about
activities going on in the Palo Alto community.

MAY 8

OCTOBER 23

To sign up, contact Becky Sanders at becky@midpenmedia.org
For more information, send an e-mail to editor@paweekly.com or call
Tyler Hanley, online editor, at 650-326-8210.

INSPIRATIONS
A resource for special events and ongoing religious
services. To inquire about or make space reservations
for Inspirations, please contact
Blanca Yoc at 223-6596
or email byoc@paweekly.com

Page 24ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

CALL US TODAY

Heritage Trust
1 866 990 0026
1-866-990-0026

Movies
NOW PLAYING
The following is a sampling of movies
recently reviewed in the Weekly:
The Change-Up --1/2
(Century 20) Fuddy-duddy family
man Dave Lockwood (Jason Bateman) and irresponsible bachelor Mitch
Planko (Ryan Reynolds) are walking
archetypes. Mitch looks at Dave’s
wife, Jamie (Leslie Bibb), and sees the
committed love and support of a good
woman, while Dave rues having missed
the boat on years of promiscuity. Dave
and Mitch wake up in each other’s bodies and are forced to live as each other
for an indefinite period of time as they
investigate a way to set things right.
Rated R for pervasive strong crude
sexual content and language, some
graphic nudity and drug use. One hour,
53 minutes. — P.C. (Reviewed Aug. 5,
2011)
Crazy, Stupid, Love --1/2
(Century 16, Century 20) No one is
particularly crazy or stupid in Glenn
Ficarra and John Requa’s sad-funny
movie about love. With his hangdog expressions and deadpan lines, suburban
husband Steve Carell sets the tone —
and exhibits more bromance chemistry
with womanizer Ryan Gosling than with
Julianne Moore, who plays his wife of
almost 25 years. The plot centers on a
heartbroken Cal Weaver (Carell), who
is happily married to Emily (Moore)
until she blurts out that she’s had a
fling with a co-worker (Kevin Bacon)
and wants a divorce. The most hilarious scenes involve Gosling’s character
trying to transform Carell’s loser into
a Lothario. Rated: PG-13 for coarse
humor, sexual content and language.
1 hour, 47 minutes. — S.T. (Reviewed
July 29, 2011)
The Help -(Century 16, Century 20) Despite being a privileged white girl obliged to
play nice with the community’s nasty
cliques of racists, Skeeter (Emma
Stone) has the soul of a rebel. She
decides to help the help — that is,
work against the mistreatment of local
black maids by getting them to tell her
their stories, which Skeeter will fashion
into a book she’s writing on spec for a
Harper & Row editor (Mary Steenburgen). Rated PG-13 for thematic material. Two hours, 27 minutes. — P.C.
(Reviewed Aug. 12, 2011)

Midnight in Paris ---1/2
(Guild, Century 20) Owen Wilson plays
Gil Pender, an American in Paris beguiled by the notion that “every street,
every boulevard is its own special art
form.” A self-described Hollywood
hack, Gil is a successful screenwriter
who grinds out movie scripts but longs
to write real literature. And then with
a magical stroke reminiscent of “The
Purple Rose of Cairo,” the admirer of
1920s Paris becomes immersed in his
favorite period. An incredulous Gil interacts with expatriate icons of the Lost
Generation and the artists who contributed to the legendary time and place.
Rated PG-13 for some sexual references and smoking. 1 hour, 34 minutes.
— S.T. (Reviewed May 27, 2011)
The Whistleblower ---1/2
(Aquarius) A divorced mother of three,
Kathryn Bolkovac (Rachel Weisz) is a
Nebraska cop turned United Nations
peacekeeper in turn-of-the-millennium
Sarajevo, where she encounters the
kidnapping, sexual and emotional
abuse, and forced prostitution of young
Bosnian women. Bolkovac discovers
that her employer (a contracted international peacekeeping taskforce here
called Democra Security) is well aware
of the abuses, and that her colleagues
patronize the abusers. With the moral
support of Madeleine Rees (Vanessa
Redgrave) of the U.N.’s Gender Affairs
office, Bolkovac investigates the abuses and attempts to organize raids that
do more than ineffectually go through
the motions. Rated R for disturbing
violent content including a brutal sexual
assault, graphic nudity and language.
One hour, 48 minutes. — P.C. (Reviewed Aug. 12, 2011)

CITY OF PALO ALTO PRESENTS – 27TH ANNUAL

PALO ALTO WEEKLY MOONLIGHT RUN & WALK
Friday, September 9, 2O11

TIME & PLACE
5K walk 7:00pm, 10K run 8:15pm, 5K run 8:45pm.
Race-night registration 6:00 to 8:00pm at City of Palo Alto Baylands Athletic Center, Embarcadero & Geng Roads (just east
of the Embarcadero Exit off Highway 101). Parking — go to PaloAltoOnline.com to check for specific parking locations.

COURSE
5K and 10K loop courses over Palo Alto Baylands levee, through the marshlands by the light of the Harvest Moon!
Course is flat, USAT&F certified (10k run only) on levee and paved roads. Water at all stops. Course map available
at www.PaloAltoOnline.com.

REGISTRATIONS & ENTRY FEE
Pre-registration fee is $25 per entrant (postmarked by September 2, 2011) and includes a long-sleeve t-shirt.
Late/race-night registration is $30 and includes a shirt only while supplies last.
Family package: Children 12 and under run free with a registered parent. A completed entry form for each child
must be submitted with adult registration. Please indicate on form and include $15 for t-shirt.
No confirmation of mail-in registration available. Registration also available online at www.PaloAltoOnline.com.
Refunds will not be issued for no-show registrations and t-shirts will not be held.

SPORTS TEAM/CLUBS:
Pre-registration opportunity for organizations of 10 or more runners; e-mail MoonlightRun@paweekly.com.

MINORS:
If not pre-registered Minors under 18 MUST bring signed parental/waiver form (below) on race night to participate.

COMPUTERIZED RESULTS by A Change of Pace
Chip timing by A Change of Pace. Race results will be posted on the Internet at www.PaloAltoOnline.com by 11pm
race night. Registration forms must be filled out completely and correctly for results to be accurate.
Race organizers are not responsible for incorrect results caused by incomplete or incorrect registration forms. You
must register for the event you plan to participate in.

BENEFICIARY
Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund. A holiday-giving fund to benefit Palo Alto area non-profits and charitable organizations.
In April 2011, 45 organizations received a total of $240,000 (from the 2010-2011 Holiday Fund.)

Stanford

MORE INFORMATION
Call (650) 463-4920, (650) 326-8210, email MoonlightRun@paweekly.com or go to www.PaloAltoOnline.com.
For safety reasons, no dogs allowed on course for the 5K and 10K runs. They are welcome on the 5K walk only. No retractable
leashes! Please bring your own clean-up bag. Jogging strollers welcome in the 5K walk or at the back of either run.

Flashlights/head lights recommended.
First aid service and chiropractic evaluations will be available.

Register online at www.PaloAltoOnline.com
GOT OLD SHOES? Change someone’s world with a pair of your shoes. Bring your gently worn shoes to the Moonlight Run and they will be sent to Djibouti, Africa.

WAIVER: In consideration of your accepting my entry, intending to be legally bound do hereby for myself, my heirs, executors and administrators, waive, and
release any and all rights and claims that I may have against the persons and organizations afﬁliated with the run and sponsoring agencies, and the assignees
for any and all injuries suffered by me while traveling to and from, and while participating in the Moonlight Run, or associated activities September 9, 2011.
I further attest that I am physically ﬁt and sufﬁciently trained for participation in this event.

SIGNATURE OF REGISTRANT (parent or guardian if under 18 years of age)
must have this on Race Night

Camarones con mojo features spicy sautĂŠed shrimp with piquillo and habanero peppers served on Cuban
toast.

DINNER BY THE MOVIES AT SHORELINEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

Pizzeria Venti
vations
r
e
s
e
r
epting
now acc

able!
l
i
a
v
a
g
caterin

onday evenings on California Avenue in Palo
Alto are pretty peaceful.
Many restaurants are closed;
business is spotty. It was so subdued on a recent Monday that
street parking was available. It
was that quiet.
That is, until I opened the door
at La Bodeguita del Medio, the
14-year-old Cuban-inspired restaurant that packs them in six
days per week. Few tables were
available shortly after 6 p.m.
The restaurant, conceived
by Michael and Lara Ekwall,
opened in 1997. Michael caught
the restaurant bug while working
his way through college in Mary-

land, and later at UCLA. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I just
fell in love with the business,â&#x20AC;? he
said.
As a student, he traveled to
Cuba and visited the original La
Bodeguita del Medio in Havana.
The name means â&#x20AC;&#x153;little bar in the
middle of the block.â&#x20AC;? It was one
of Hemingwayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s favorites (what
bar wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t?). There, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Papaâ&#x20AC;? enjoyed hand-rolled cigars, rum
mojitos and the local color that
he often incorporated into his
work.
On California Avenue, the
interior colors are warm, vibrant Caribbean hues. Tables
and banquettes are spaced, and
the place can be noisy but rarely

Ossobuco is a classic dish from Milan
and features braised Veal shanks in a white wine
and tomato sauce. Our simple, yet elegant recipe
will be a family favorite for years to come. For
your dining pleasure, we offer this recipe.
From our kitchen to yours, BUON APPETITO!
Pizzeria Venti Recipe - Chef Carlo Maeda

Preparation instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in foil pan. Add the onion, carrot and celery. Cook until the
vegetables soften, about 10 minutes then drain the oil.
3. Meanwhile, heat the other 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a foil pan. Dredge the veal shanks
in the ďŹ&#x201A;our, coating on all sides and shake off the excess ďŹ&#x201A;our. When the oil is hot, slip in the
shanks and brown them on all sides. This should take about 6-7 minutes per side. Remove the
veal shanks and place them in the ďŹ rst pan on top of the cooked vegetables.
4. Add the wine, butter, chicken broth, tomatoes, pepper and salt to the pot. The liquid should
come at least two thirds of the way to the top of the shanks. If it does not, add more broth.

5. Cover the pan and place it in the oven. Cook for about 2 hours, turning and basting every
30 minutes, until the meat is very tender.
6. Transfer the Ossobuco to a warm plate and carefully remove the strings.
To serve place Ossobuco on a plate with Risotto Milanese, or Pastina pasta in herbed
olive oil and garlic.

chocolate lover’s nirvana.
Havana bananas ($9.50) were
caramelized bananas, walnuts,
cinnamon and vanilla ice cream.
It was reminiscent of Brennan’s
of New Orleans’ famous Bananas
Foster and almost as tasty.
The Key lime tart ($7.50) was
that sumptuous Key lime custard
with graham-cracker crust, and a
swirl of raspberry atop. What distinguished the pie was the thickness of the lush custard.
La Bodeguita del Medio is a
lively restaurant with interesting,
well-prepared dishes inspired
by the cuisine of the Caribbean,
Cuba in particular. With fun libations and reasonable prices, it
is probably not rowdy enough for
Hemingway — which makes it
perfect for us mere mortals. N

New semester starts September 10.
For students who do not speak
Mandarin at home
Jordan School-Saturdays 9am-11am
Fairmeadow School-Wednesdays 1:50pm-3:40pm
>ÕÀiÊ-V /ÕiÃ`>ÞÃÊUÊ
V>Ê-V 7i`iÃ`>ÞÃÊ
Contact Phyllis (650) 917-7907

Hwa Shin Chinese School
750 N. California Ave., Palo Alto

www.hwashinschool.org

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING
of the City of Palo Alto
Architectural Review Board (ARB)
8:30 A.M., Thursday, September 1, 2011, Downtown Library, 270 Forest Avenue. Go to the Development Center at 285 Hamilton Avenue to review
ﬁled documents; contact Diana Tamale for information
regarding business hours at 650.329.2144.
4190 El Camino Real [11PLN_00148]: Request by
Northwest Signs on behalf of Fisker and McLaren for a
sign exception to exceed the maximum number of wall
signs permitted. Zone District:CS(AD).
Amy French
Manager of Current Planning

Real Estate Matters
THE HYBRID
HOME
Do you find fuel prices are
harder to afford? Are you concerned
about the environment our children
will inherit? Would you like to see a
drop in our country’s dependence
on foreign oil? How do all these
questions relate to real estate?
We all can have a positive impact by reducing our homes’ utility
bills and operating costs. “Green”
homes leave more green in both the
environment and your wallet! It
won’t be a fad. That’s what people
thought about hybrid automobiles a
few years ago, but look at the demand they have now.
A green home offers better
energy efficiency, environmentally

friendly building materials, and
better indoor air quality. Because of
all those features, it will also offer a
higher resale value in the future.
Lenders are doing their part to
encourage the greening of both
existing homes and new construction. Fannie Mae offers an energyefficient mortgage that allows borrowers to qualify for a bigger loan,
and financing for improvements.
When you factor in savings on utilities, you may well pay less per
month for this kind of loan than a
traditional mortgage!
Granted, most green homes on
the market now are new, and it may
be awhile before resales appear.
But you can be sure it’s not just a
fad – it’s the future!

Call Jackie & Richard to
Sell or Buy Your Home
schoelerman

overpowering. The bar and dining
room are separated spaces, which
reduces clatter without dampening spirits on either side. Colorful
Cuban artwork adds to the festive
air.
For starters, the empanadas
($10.50) were stuffed with picadillo pork (finely chopped), roasted chilies and pepper jack cheese,
then quickly fried and topped with
a slightly piquant coconut jalapeño
sauce atop a scoop of black beans.
I’m not an empanada fan because
usually there is more dough than
stuffing. Not these. They were fat
with pork and cheese.
Croquetas ($9) were crispy
potato fritters filled with Spanish cheese, chives and pimenton
(paprika). A tamarind-chipotle
dipping sauce accompanied. The
croquetas were delivered piping
hot and were golden-crisp outside,
with creamy potato inside.
The camarones con mojo ($12)
were delightfully lip-smackingly
spicy. The shrimp was sautéed
with piquillo and habanero peppers and served on little toasts.
On a warm evening, after a rum
drink or two, this shrimp dish will
make you sweat.
The Graycliff chowder ($8) was
prepared with shrimp and conch
meat suffused in a roasted vegetable and habañero purée. Thick,
with just enough spice to remember, it was a chowder with zing.
Service was always prompt and
friendly at La Bodeguita. The
waitstaff took time to explain
dishes, particularly the daily specials, and made suitable recommendations.
Entrée-wise, the ropa vieja
($18) featured fork-tender meat,
with shredded skirt steak, chili
peppers and yellow rice, with
plantanos maduros (sweet plantains pan-fried in oil). The nearly
caramelized plantains added a
homey sweetness to the plate.
Arroz con pollo ($17.50) was
the most basic and the blandest
dish I had at La Bodeguita. There
was no fault with the preparation; it just wasn’t very adventurous, but then again, many diners
aren’t. The braised chicken came
with yellow rice and plantanos
maduros.
I loved the coconut-crusted
snapper ($21). Two crisp fillets
sat atop boniato mash (creamy
white sweet potatoes) and wilted
greens. Lime butter oozed over
the lush dish. The coconut crust
in this case was more like panko
bread crumbs than flaky coconut,
but packed more flavor.
Just had to try a side of fried
yucca ($4.50). It was worth it. The
yucca was cut into thick Frenchfry-like pieces. Hot and meaty,
almost doughy, they quickly disappeared.
La Bodeguita has an appealing
Cuban cocktail list, a worthy and
reasonably priced wine list, and
an outstanding menu of aged sipping rums from all over the Caribbean. Prices are mostly $8 to $12
per pour with a few uncommon
exceptions, like the ultra-smooth
Pryat Cask 23 from Anguilla, $22
per pour.
Desserts do not disappoint. Mr.
Johnson’s rum chocolate cake
($8.50) was a dense, ultra-chocolate cake made with Callebaut
chocolate rum sauce. This was a

(650) 855-9700

(650) 566-8033

jackie@apr.com

richard@apr.com

DRE # 01092400

DRE # 01413607

www.schoelerman.com

Good for Business. Good for You.
Good for the Community.
*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU Page 27

Search a complete
listing of local
restaurant
reviews by location
or type of food on
PaloAltoOnline.com

Best of Palo Alto 2011

Best Of 2011
Weekly readers select
a symphony of shops,
restaurants and more
2011

W

hat local eateries, stores, businesses and community favorites make Weekly
readers sing their praises and do a happy dance? It’s all here in this year’s Best
Of issue.
From where to get the best burrito to whom to call for plumbing issues and where to take
your family pet for a checkup, readers weighed in on what local establishments shine like
rock stars and earn standing ovations.
Some businesses — The Beatles, Beach Boys or Rolling Stones of the community, if
you will — are Hall of Famers: They’ve won their categories five years in a row. Some are
more like Best New Artists at the Grammy awards, welcome breaths of fresh air to the local
scene.
Read on and rock on! N

usinesses that win their categories five years
in a row take home an award that might even
rival a Grammy: They get to be in the “Hall
of Fame” for three years without having to gather votes.
Current businesses now in their third HoF year are IKEA
and LaBelle Day Spa.

The Counter is the new wave of hamburger excellence, rocking the Best Burgers category.

Black Eyed Peas

picture i t

framed
Custom

Ready-Made

Photo

Thank You
Palo Alto Weekly Readers
for once again voting
University Art

Food & Drink
Bagels
Whether you are a homesick New
Yorker seeking a good bagel that
lives up to your exacting standards
or simply a bagel aficionado, House
of Bagels is the answer. It provides
an eclectic array of delicious spreads
and crunchy, crisp bagels baked from
scratch every morning. Whatever
you are hankering for, you are sure to
find it at this favorite local eatery. 526
University Ave., Palo Alto; 650-3225189. houseofbagels.com

Bakery/Desserts
Our vocabulary owes French for the
word â&#x20AC;&#x153;dessert,â&#x20AC;? so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no surprise that
Douce France induces a sugar rush
par excellence. In addition to serving

This Brooklyn-flavored favorite is
more than just a bagel shop. Its new
and expanded menu includes kosher
delights such as the noodle kugel
and the Brooklyn babka, as well as a
healthy array of knishes and challahs.
Still, main draw for this popular California Avenue establishment remains
its trove of bagels and cream cheeses, including mouth-watering spreads
such as sun-dried tomato, cucumber
scallion and green olive-and-garlic.
Izzyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Brooklyn Bagels has been
winning votersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; hearts and pleasing
their palates for years â&#x20AC;&#x201D; qualities that
bought it a ticket to the Hall of Fame.
477 S. California Ave., Palo Alto;
650-329-0700.
izzysbrooklynbagels.com

Even the youngest musicians are sweet on Best Bakery/Desserts winner
Douce France.

Best of Palo Alto 2011
meringues and a colorful selection of
macaroons, including a blushing, fanciful pink that’ll have you living la vie
en rose. #104 Town & Country Village, Palo Alto; 650-322-3601.

Breakfast
Perhaps a treasured item on Hobee’s
menu says it all: the Best Darn Breakfast In Town. At all three Hobee’s
locations, the BDBIT comes with
two eggs, served your way; “Country
Style” hashbrowns; and toast or the
blueberry coffeecake people line up
for. But there’s much more on the
menu, from omelets and scrambles
(from the Stanford Cardinal Omelet
with chicken, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, spinach and cheese to the
Tofu Scramble, spiced with cumin) to
light bites (an oatmeal bar and a seasonal fruit plate). Hobee’s also took
the top prize in the Dining With Kids
category.
#67 Town & Country Village,
Palo Alto, 650-327-4111;
4224 El Camino Real, Palo Alto,
650-856-6124;
2312 Central Expressway,
Mountain View, 650-968-6050;
hobees.com

Burger
A glance at a menu at The Counter is a lesson in the evolution of the
burger. The sea of options is enough
to make the most fervent vegetarians
salivate (or, at the very least, order a
veggie burger). Want cheese? Options
include Tillamook Cheddar or Soft
Ripened Brie. Would you prefer Tza-

Lindsay and Noah Hiken of The Village Cheese House are jazzed about
being voted Best Deli/Sandwiches.
tziki or peanut sauce? Then there’s
the sea of toppings, from grilled
pineapple and roasted green chilies
to smoked bacon and fried onion
strings. It’s not your grandpa’s burger,
but so what? Our readers agreed,
once again, that this bustling joint is
the city’s top burger destination. 369
S. California Ave., Palo Alto; 650321-3900. thecounterburger.com/
paloalto

Burrito
If it could change the world, Chipotle
would be the sunlight in everyone’s
burrito universe. And it might change
the world. In addition to being customizable, fresh, fast and out-and-out
delicious, Chipotle’s burritos have
integrity. The chain has found its way
into Palo Alto’s hearts by supporting
sustainable family farms that treat
their land and animals with respect.

Deli/Sandwiches
A good sandwich can make your taste
buds sing, but a great sandwich elicits an orchestra of savory sensations.
Enter The Village Cheese House,
the Mozart of sandwich-makers.
With a cornucopia of breads, meats,
cheeses and veggies to choose from,

the Village Cheese House has the
right deli delicacies to satisfy a clientele as diverse as the Village People.
#157 Town & Country Village, Palo
Alto; 650-326-9251. thevch.com

Grocery Store
Calling Trader Joe’s a “grocery
store” is kind of like calling Elvis “the
(continued on next page)

We are moving across the street!
Check us out at 200 Hamilton
in the Fall!
%MERSON 3TREET
0ALO !LTO s
www.fraicheyogurt.com

AppleWoodStock

Attila Varsanyi is tuned in to Applewood Pizza, Hall of Fame winner for Best Pizza.
(continued from previous page)

www.cityofpaloalto.org/utilities (650) 329–2241

Whether playing hockey or
managing your water supply,
my team is what matters.
Making sure you have water every
time you turn on your tap takes a
large team that includes Utilities
staff and regional players. Together
we focus on urban water management,
conservation, drought allocation and
future needs analysis.
There are complex factors to manage,
but my goal is to ﬁnd the best
solutions. When I make that goal, it’s
a win for all of us.
For information on water awareness
and conservation visit
CityOfPaloAlto.org/Resiwater
—Nicolas “Nico” Procos
Senior Resource Planner, Water

Page 34ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

guy with the sideburns.” Yes, it’s true
that this earthy, quirky and increasingly ubiquitous chain has all the bare
necessities a kitchen may require.
But it’s the unusual, palate-expanding
products — the mango butter, the
habanera-and-lime salsa, the mojito
salmon — that have made TJ’s a local superstar. A relative newcomer
to Palo Alto, the supermarket is now
a flagship destination at the Town
& Country Village and, according to
readers, the local King of Groceries.
#140 Town & Country Village, Palo
Alto; 650-327-7018. traderjoes.com

Happy Hour
Care for some jalapeño cornbread
and Cajun calamari with that raspberry mojito? How about a ginger julep to fill your soul with some Bourbon
Street cheer? This bustling downtown
joint with New Orleans flair, flavorful
Hurricanes, funky art and a generous
beer selection can cure the deepest
case of the blues. Not surprisingly,
readers chose Nola as the city’s finest happy-hour joint. Bottoms up! 535
Ramona St., Palo Alto; 650-3282722. nolas.com

Ice Cream/Gelato
You scream, I scream, we all scream
for ice cream. That is especially true
when the ice cream is dished out by
Gelato Classico. Gelato, a traditional Italian dessert that has gained huge
popularity in the United States, tantalizes the taste buds like no other style
of ice cream. And Gelato Classico has
a rich selection of flavors, from Green
Tea and Hazelnut to Vanilla Bean and
Caramello Chocolate Crunch. Grab a

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
Elvis might be the king of rock, but
Rick is the king of ice cream. Rick’s
Rather Rich Ice Cream has satisfied Peninsula eaters for the better
part of four decades, one of the
reasons it has earned honors in the
Best Of Palo Alto Hall of Fame. Rick’s
features 48 flavors of rich and creamy
ice cream, including Banana Ripple,
Caramel Praline and White Chocolate
Ginger. Rick’s even caters and offers
ice cream cakes and novelties. Elvis
has left the building, but Rick’s is right
around the corner. 3946 Middlefield
Road, Palo Alto; 650-493-6553.
ricksicecream.com

Milkshake
Not to be confused with its similarly
named diner cousin, the richly historied Peninsula Creamery Dairy
Store & Grill predates most Palo Altans. Distant as 1923 may seem from
the present, this beloved checkerfloored throwback continues to take
care of business in the down-to-earth
way it always has, creating superbly
priced sandwiches, soups, salads,
breakfasts and, of course, indulgent
ice cream concoctions. 900 High St.,
Palo Alto; 650-323-3175.
peninsulacreamery.com

Hall of Fame: 1st Year
With its nostalgic interior and showstopping lineup of most-craved
comfort foods, the upbeat Palo Alto
Creamery Fountain & Grill rocks
on as an iconic tween hangout, fam-

Best of Palo Alto 2011

Dave Batista and Alie Simpson of Palo Alto Creamery Fountain & Grill channel the Eurythmics. Palo Alto
Creamery Fountain & Grill is the Hall of Fame winner for Best Milkshake and Dining With Kids.
ily favorite and general go-to eatery.
While itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an ideal place to hone
ketchup-dispensing skills or tackle
a positively mammoth burger, the
consensus is that thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something
supremely special about settling into
a booth and sharing the ultimate wickedly thick milkshake. 566 Emerson
St., Palo Alto; 650-323-3131; and
#2A Stanford Shopping Center,
Palo Alto; 650-327-3141.
paloaltocreamery.com

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
Applewood Pizza is enjoying its
second year in the Best Of Palo Alto
Hall of Fame. The impressive menu
offers numerous signature pizzas, as
well as the opportunity to concoct
your own pizza. The bar flaunts 37
imported beers, yet the restaurant
maintains a family-friendly atmo-

sphere where people can go to relax
and enjoy a flavorful meal. Some of
their lesser-known specialty sides
include Hungarian goulash and langos, which is Hungarian fried bread.
The restaurant also has the option of
ordering online, which comes with the
choice of take-out or delivery. 1001
El Camino Real, Menlo Park; 650324-3486. applewoodpizza.com

(continued on next page)

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been this thrilled about a
chocolate shop since going to the
Max Brenner in Union Square, NYC,â&#x20AC;?
a local Yelper wrote of Moniqueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
Chocolates. And readers agree.
Peanut butter and jelly chocolates,
chai truffle with milk chocolate and
salted caramel are but a few selections of these single-origin treats.
Super-rich chocolate beverages with
mint, hazelnut milk chocolate, plus
specialties such as torched French
sâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;mores make Moniqueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a great
place to taste chocolates from different parts of the world. 539 Bryant
St., Palo Alto; 650-323-9669.

Pizza
The pizza as work of art is what
Howard Bulkaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s creative restaurant,
Howieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Artisan Pizza, is about.
Each bite sings â&#x20AC;&#x201D; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a symphony of
flavors brought to life and still steaming from the wood-fired oven. Howieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
embraces local, fresh ingredients.
Choose from the classic pizza Margherita to baked potato pizza with
crisp bacon and Gruyere cheese â&#x20AC;&#x201D; or

Providing quality care to the
community since 1934.

Things are always hip and hopping at NOLA, winner for Best Happy
Hour.

Those in the mood for fresh fruits and veggies can head to Sigona’s, co-winner for Best Produce.
(continued from previous page)

Produce

Thank You for Voting Us

Best
Plumbers

2011

Sometimes finding the best fruits
and veggies around can be difficult,
but Palo Altans are in luck. Whole
Foods Market and Sigona’s tied
for top produce honors. Sigona’s offers a wide selection of organic and
commercial produce. The store also
serves as a regular grocery store and
carries a line of products branded
with its own Sigona Signature label.
Whole Foods also offers an incredible variety of produce along with its
full-service grocery. And with the fruits
and veggies from these stores, you
are guaranteed to be in for good eating. Whole Foods: 774 Emerson St.,
Palo Alto; 650-326-8676.
wholefoodsmarket.com;
Sigona’s: #399 Stanford Shopping
Center, Palo Alto; 650-329-1340.
sigonas.com

Some swear by the Southwestern,
while others prefer the Somen. But
whether Weekly readers prefer bacon
and avocado or Japanese somen
noodles and caramelized shallots

on their salads, many agree that the
best local salads are to be found
at Sprout in downtown Palo Alto.
Diners can choose signature salads
with predetermined combinations, or
assemble their own ingredients. For
some extra protein, put tri-tip steak,
salmon or ahi tuna on top.
168 University Ave., Palo Alto;
650-323-7688. cafesprout.com

Seafood
Best Of voters’ selection for Best
Seafood might not ever feature the
band Phish, but it certainly has plenty
of the underwater variety. The Fish
Market can satisfy hungry customers
with its school of delicious offerings.
Try Pacific Ahi sashimi, mesquitegrilled Alaskan Halibut or steamed
Canadian Black Mussels. With a
rotating menu of ocean-fetched fare,
you’re always getting the freshest
food at the Fish Market. Dive into
something delicious.
3150 El Camino Real, Palo Alto;
650-493-8862.
thefishmarket.com

Takeout
For those who wish to have a relaxing dinner at home with their families

or just kick back by themselves on
the sofa and indulge in a carton of
authentic Chinese food, one particular
place should come to mind. Su Hong
has yet again dominated the takeout
world for its yummy variety of Mandarin- and Szechwan-styled cuisine.
Whether you are craving the popular
combination rice plates, barbecue
pork or chicken chow mein, your
cravings will certainly be satisfied.
4256 El Camino Real, Palo Alto;
650-493-4664. suhongeatery.com

Yogurt
Simple, local, natural ingredients
bring regular or frozen yogurt-lovers
flocking to Fraiche, whether they’re
attracted to the “natural” flavor, soy
option or are suckers for chocolate.
Toppings range from chocolate
shaved off a large bar to fresh berries
or chopped fruit — in season. Lavender-flavored biscotti or chocolate-chip
cookies — or organic oatmeal for the
health aficionados — make it a meal.
The owners are passionate about organic, healthy food, extending that to
their Blue Bottle coffee offerings.
644 Emerson St., Palo Alto;
650-566-0055. fraicheyogurt.com

CITY OF PALO ALTO RECREATION PRESENTS

THE 27TH ANNUAL – Palo Alto Weekly

MOONLIGHT RUN & WALK
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2O11

Register now at www.PaloAltoOnline

Best of Palo Alto 2011

take time to relax
hot tubs
steam
sauna

2011

CALAFIA CAFÉ

2011

CALIFORNIA &
VEGETARIAN
CUISINE
GREATEST HITS

massage
facial
spa treatments

2010-2011
www.watercourseway.com

650.462.2000
165 Channing Avenue, Palo Alto, California 94301

THANK YOU FOR VOTING US

THE BEST BURGER
www.thecounterburger.com

All photos were taken by fans at flickr.com. Search “The Counter” & upload your own.

One of Charlie Ayers’ greatest hits is his Calafia Café & Market A Go Go, winner for Best California Cuisine
and Best Vegetarian Restaurant.

Red Hot Chili Peppers
Restaurants
Ambiance
Restaurant goers light up when talking about St. Michael’s Alley,
which also earned honors for brunch.
See the complete listing in the Sunday
Brunch category. La Bodeguita del
Medio finished a close second.

baked goods on the market side, with
wholesome meals and a cute chandelier on the cafe side. The all-around
delicious fare, plus tasty vegetarian,
vegan and gluten-free options, make
Calafia a true exemplar of Silicon

Valley sensibility and a winner in the
additional category of Vegetarian
Restaurant. #130 Town & Country
(continued on page 40)

Hall of Fame: 1st Year
When the lights go down in the city
and the sun shines on the bay, the
lights are already low at Evvia, and
it’s the Mediterranean lapping on the
rocks. Adorned with dark barrels and
copper pots, the partially exposed
kitchen adds to an atmosphere that is
at once distinctly classy and authentically old-world. 420 Emerson St.,
Palo Alto; 650-326-0983. evvia.net

2011

2011
RUNNER-UP

U 3 Year/36K Warranty
on all repairs!
U Serving the community
since 1972
U Woman Owned
U Bosch Service Center

Bar/Lounge
Atmospheric bar/lounge La Bodeguita del Medio also rocked the
vote with its Cuban-style cuisine. See
the complete listing in the Latin American Cuisine category.

California Cuisine
Having spent years fueling sharp
minds at Google with even sharper
culinary panache, Chef Charlie Ayers
is certainly qualified to make a statement about nutrition. His Calafia
Café & Market A Go Go is a Mecca
of sophisticated simplicity, boasting yummy take-out lunches and

Thank you for
voting us best
auto repair

650-968-5202
www.autoworks.com

Hobee’s is one groovy place, winning for Best Breakfast and Dining
With Kids.

New Tools, New Anesthesia, New Therapy
Mean Big Changes in Hip Replacement
David Heuck is a lot like most people
when something hurts and doesn’t get
better. “I just didn’t want to go in to
see my doctor,” he said. “I didn’t want
someone to tell me I’d have to have
something done.”

As far as Heuck was concerned, that
fixed the problem and life went on
as usual. Two years ago, however, he
played golf two days in a row. The next
day, “all of a sudden, I had some pretty
intense pain in my hip. I didn’t think
much of it. I figured I’d tweaked something the wrong way,” he said.
But it didn’t go away, and it didn’t go
away, and Heuck turned to some online
medical information which made him
think he had bursitis, an inflammation in a joint that can resolve itself. “I
was pretty good at compartmentalizing
things,” he said. “I just gimped along.”

“It gets depressing when you can’t
do things you normally would do.
I just got to the point of thinking,
‘This is how it’s going to be.’”
– David Heuck, patient,
Stanford Hospital & Clinics
Miller is Matt Miller, MD, an orthopaedic surgeon at Stanford Hospital
& Clinics, with a Stanford University
undergraduate degree in human biology and a cum laude graduate of
Boston University School of Medicine.
His special interest and training is in
minimally invasive techniques for hip
and knee replacements and design of
hip and knee implants and instrumentation.
He has also done more than 750 hip
and knee replacements.
Miller represents a generation of surgeons “who grew up playing video

games, so surgical techniques
like arthroscopy,
working from a
monitor and using instruments
to do something
on a different
plane make
sense to us,” he
said. “It’s about
relearning what
you’re supposed
to look for, where
vital structures
After David Heuck played golf two days in a row, he developed an intense pain in his
are and how to
hip. He thought he’d tweaked something, but the pain didn’t go away.
use the newer
instruments to
protect those structures.”
All went well with Heuck’s surgery,
and when he was back at work only
Miller is also part of the broadening
six days after Miller replaced his hip,
trend throughout surgical specialties to
walking unassisted, some of Heuck’s
use smaller incisions, an approach that
colleagues thought he’d decided not to
reduces tissue damage, which can rehave the surgery after all.
duce surgical pain and recovery time.
With hip replacements, the introduction of minimally invasive techniques, in combination with changes
in anesthesia and rehabilitation has
transformed a once-lengthy and very
painful operation. “It is still a serious
procedure, however,” Miller said, “and
patients should exhaust non-operative
measures first.

Smaller can mean faster
In Heuck’s first meeting with Miller,
the physician was very direct. “You’ve
exhausted your non-operative options,”
Miller said, “and your best option is
to have the hip replaced.” Heuck’s left
hip had never formed properly that
had cause the difference in his leg
lengths and it failed quickly, relative

When he played catch with his son,
he could only go for balls on one side
of his body. When he bent down, it
was an awkward, stork-like movement. He couldn’t walk uphill or
stand for any length of time. The
pain was constant, even waking him
at night. “It gets depressing when
you can’t do things you normally
would do,” Heuck said. “I just got to
the point of thinking, ‘This is how it’s
going to be.’ “

Trying something different
This April, he walked up in front of an
audience to give a presentation and
his doctor happened to be there. Afterwards, he came over to Heuck and
said, “What is up with you? Go get an
MRI.”
Within minutes of the MRI test’s end,
“the guy who’s reading the results tells
Page 38ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

Norbert von der Groeben

At 51, Heuck is the father of two young
children, a busy executive and a guy
who likes to be active. Golf is part of
his daily environment and he enjoys
the game. He’d been active in sports
in his youth, but around the time he
turned 14, that stopped being so easy
when his lower back began to hurt. A
doctor told him it was because his legs
were different lengths. “Go to a shoe repair person and have an insert made,”
the doctor said. The back pain stopped.

me he’s surprised I’m even walking,”
Heuck said. His doctor began a search
for someone to help. “He asked around
and talked to people and gave me Dr.
Miller’s name. He said Miller was doing some new procedures that maybe
were a little bit less invasive,” said
Heuck.

Minimally invasive hip replacement surgery meant David Heuck was able to return to work six days after his surgery, and, instead of having to wait months to get back to
Norbert von der Groeben
playing golf, he was back on the course in six weeks.

special feature

Getting a New Hip

t Replacing the hip joint means putting a new covering on the socket, located
in the pelvis and creating a whole new version of the ball-shaped top of the
femur that fits into the socket. A metal stem is inserted about six inches deep
into the femur, with a ball, usually metal, anchored to its tip to complete the
mechanism.
t Hip replacement surgery may still mean restrictions on certain kinds of
movement, like jogging or high-impact sports.
t When properly cared for, a well-positioned hip replacement can last for 20
years or more.

t Replacing the ball and socket hip joint is a relatively new surgery the first
routinely successful modern procedures were performed in the 1950s and
1960s. Now, more than 300,000 hip replacements are conducted each year in
the US.
t Most hip replacement candidates are between 60 and 80 years old, but
barring other health conditions, there is no weight or age limit.
t All our joints are cushioned by cartilage; when it is damaged or wears away,
the absence of a cushion means pain from bone on bone contact. The hip is
the largest joint in the body, the primary support of our body weight.
t The hip joint can deteriorate for many reasons; the most common is the effect
of osteoarthritis, where the cartilage that cushions the movement of our
bones wears away.
t Without that cushion, every movement of a joint becomes painful, even while
resting, day or night. Being overweight also puts stress on the hip joints.
t Some sports activities may mean harder wear and tear on hip joints, and hip
replacement at an earlier age.
t The pain may be dull and aching, or sharp. A worn-out hip joint may cause
lower back or knee pain, too.

For more information about minimally invasive hip and knee replacement
at Stanford, call 408.866.6651 or 650.723.5643, or visit stanfordhospital.
org/hiplg or stanfordhospital.org/hiprc. To see an animation of a hip
replacement surgery, visit stanfordhospital.org/seehip.
Join us at stanfordhospital.org/socialmedia.
Watch the new Stanford Hospital Health Notes television show on
Comcast: channel 28 on Mondays at 8:30 p.m., Tuesdays at 3:30 p.m.
and Fridays at 8:30 a.m.; channel 30 Saturdays at 10:30 p.m. It can also be
viewed at youtube.com/stanfordhospital.

before you do small incision replacements.”

Miller explained what he
wanted to do: Instead of
a 10- to 12-inch incision,
a three-to four-inch incision; instead of a general
anesthesia, which often
causes postoperative
nausea and mental confusion, a spinal anesthesia,
which would avoid that
side effect and dampen
nerve fibers that respond
to surgical pain. He would
David Heuck was back to work so quickly after his hip replacement
surgery that some of his colleagues, like Shawn Smith wondered if he’d
also use a long-acting lodecided against the surgery.
cal infusion of a numbing,
Novocain-like medication,
in combination with a
It’s a hugely different scenario from
drug that causes blood vessels to conthe early days of hip and knee replacestrict and keep the numbing medicaments, in the 1960s, when patients
tion from dispersing.
might spend three to four months
in the hospital and then many more
months recovering full function.
“The goal is to get people healed

Less fuss, less pain

quicker so they can get back to work
and get back to life.”
– Matt Miller, MD, orthopaedic surgeon,
Stanford Hospital & Clinics

Before his surgery, Heuck and his wife,
Janie, had to attend a pre-surgery
class, of sorts, to learn what to expect.
Heuck said he was surprised at first
because he was 20 years younger than
everyone else. Then, as the class continued and the instructor was explaining about drains and bandages, Heuck
said, she kept turning to him and saying, “Oh, you won’t have that with Dr.
Miller,” Heuck began to appreciate how
his hip replacement might be different
from most.
“I don’t think I had a full appreciation
of how wonderful it was going to be,”
said Janie Heuck. “It was all new to

With newly-designed instrumentation
that allows less damage to muscles,
through that smaller incision, the kind
of fast recovery Heuck experienced is
now possible. “Healthy, younger patients can go home the morning after,”
Miller said. “The goal is to get people
healed quicker so they can get back to
work and get back to life.”
The smaller incision surgery is more
technically demanding, Miller said.
“You have to know how to look at
things, to know what you’re looking for.
You have to have lots of experience and
specific training with hips and knees

us.” She visited her husband in the recovery room immediately after surgery
and expected to say hello and leave. “I
thought he would be loopy, and he was
completely coherent!”

“It’s changed the quality of our life,
for sure.”
– Janie Brooks Heuck
Heuck told Miller he never felt any
pain at all.
They left at 11 am the next day, less
than 48 hours after he emerged from
the operating room. Heuck’s surgery
was on a Thursday; he stopped taking
pain medications on Monday evening.
And, Wednesday, he went back to
work, which brought those colleagues
to wonder if he’d skipped the surgery.
Six weeks after
the surgery, Miller
gave him the okay
to play golf again,
albeit sensibly, and
Heuck went out
onto the course for
a bit. “It felt great,”
he said.
Norbert von der Groeben

After the surgery, Heuck would be given pain medications, but fewer narcotics, which can interfere with a patient’s
ability to participate in therapy. Within
hours of the surgery, Miller would be
asking Heuck to get up right away, and
expecting physical therapists to help
Heuck walk and get himself in and out
of bed. That kind of immediate activity,
Miller said, can cut rehabilitation time
to weeks instead of months.

Norbert von der Groeben

to his age, Miller said.
“That’s often the case.”

Back at work without any pain from his recent hip replacement surgery, David
Heuck can walk and talk to colleagues, including John Buntin, without a second
thought.

“My son is excited
for his daddy to be
able to run with
him and I’m excited because he’ll
be able to exercise
with me,” Janie
Heuck said. “It’s
changed the quality
of our life, for sure.”

Stanford Hospital & Clinics is known worldwide for advanced treatment of complex disorders in areas such as cardiovascular care, cancer treatment,
neurosciences, surgery, and organ transplants. It is currently ranked No. 17 on the U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Hospitals” list and
No. 1 in the San Jose Metropolitan area. Stanford Hospital & Clinics is internationally recognized for translating medical breakthroughs into the
care of patients. The Stanford University Medical Center is comprised of three world renowned institutions: Stanford Hospital & Clinics, the Stanford
University School of Medicine, the oldest medical school in the Western United States, and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, an adjacent pediatric
teaching hospital providing general acute and tertiary care. For more information, visit http://stanfordhospital.org/.

Chinese Restaurant
Chef Chu’s is a longtime local favorite, serving exceptional-quality Chinese food at prices that won’t break
the bank. Meat and seafood lovers
will rejoice in the selection of specialty
dishes such as Peking duck, rack of
lamb and clam soup, but vegetarians will find much to enjoy as well,
including scrumptious tofu and noodle
dishes, and even “vegetarian goose.”
1067 N. San Antonio Road, Los
Altos; 650-948-2696. chefchu.com

Coffee House
The aroma of rich, strong coffee
wafts down Ramona Street, drawing
in the caffeine-deprived to Coupa
Cafe. Or, it could be the free Wi-Fi,
the comfy casual seating, the exquisite chocolates (no need to wait for
Valentine’s Day, dear) or the unusual
Venezuelan menu that includes their
signature arepas, made with thin
cornmeal griddle cakes. Everything is
served with quiet flair, from the little
bowl of chopped fruit with breakfast
scrambles to that floral squiggle atop
the latte. Just blocks away, Peet’s
Coffee & Tea garnered a close second
place. Coupa also won in the Solo
Dining category. 538 Ramona St.,
Palo Alto; 650-322-6872.
coupacafe.com

Palo Alto and Mountain View mainstay
Hobee’s also scored on the merits of

its morning meals. See the complete
listing in the Breakfast category.

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
With its ‘50s-style atmosphere,
comfy booths, satisfying food and
off-the-chart milkshakes, Palo Alto
Creamery Fountain & Grill has
established itself in the Best Of Palo
Alto Hall of Fame for Dining With
Kids. Parents and babysitters across
the Peninsula have long frequented
the Palo Alto eatery with their young
ones in tow. The restaurant’s bee-bop
energy is bolstered by a menu that
includes homemade oatmeal, dozens
of hamburger options, onion rings, vanilla coke and much, much more. And
the restaurant is open on Mother’s
Day and Father’s Day, so kids can return the favor. 566 Emerson St.,
Palo Alto; 650-323-3131;
and #2A Stanford Shopping
Center, Palo Alto; 650-327-3141.
paloaltocreamery.com

French Restaurant
Weekly readers once again cast their
votes for the popular Bistro Elan,
which Andrea Hyde and her husband,
chef Ambjorn Lindskog, ran for 16
years on California Avenue in Palo
Alto. The pair, though, closed Bistro
Elan in July, citing rent and landlord issues. Voters will no doubt be pleased
to know that Hyde and Lindskog
moved their business only an amble
away, earlier this year opening up the
smaller Birch Street restaurant on,
well, Birch Street. Recently, Weekly
food critic Dale Bentson dined at the
new eatery and pronounced it spar-

Former Hall of Fame restaurant
Tamarine was also named the top
spot to lay down some dough. See
the complete listing in the Restaurant
to Splurge category.

Indian Restaurant
Excellent Indian food means an array of tantalizing colors, spices and
textures, from hot and spicy to rich
and creamy, and Mountain Viewâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
Amber India is no exception, offering a range of tikas, curries, biryanis
and more, enhanced with such flavors
as chilies, saffron and rose water.
Amberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cuisine leaves taste buds
singing, dancing and cheering for
an encore. Darbar garnered a close
second place. 2290 El Camino Real,
#9, Mountain View; 650-968-7511.
amber-india.com

"OLD m AVORS s %XOTIC COCKTAILS
,IVE MUSIC s 0ATIO DINING

Italian Restaurant
Whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a quick cup of coffee, a
cozy family dinner or a full-on banquet
for 25, Il Fornaio earns its keep as
a reliable venue for quality and style.
Crisp white tablecloths and the smell
of an oak-wood-burning oven define
the atmosphere. The fresh bread,
made daily from scratch, is to die for.
Conveniently, the place is open for
breakfast at 7 a.m. on weekdays, 8
a.m. on weekends. Coming in a close
second was Italian eatery Osteria.
520 Cowper St., Palo Alto;
650-853-3888. ilfornaio.com

Latin American Cuisine
The menu at La Bodeguita del Medio is distinctive and flavorful, offering
liberally spiced meats, unconventional
sauces and an ingredient repertoire
that includes everything from habaĂąero peppers and coconut milk to
guava, cassava and plantain. Taking
inspiration from the original Bodeguita
restaurant and bar in Havana where
Ernest Hemingway famously drank his
mojitos, the Palo Alto restaurant provides not only intriguing Cuban food,
but also a smoking lounge and a wide
assortment of cocktails, earning it first
place in the Bar/Lounge category as
well. 463 S. California Ave.,
Palo Alto; 650-326-7762.
labodeguita.com

Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plenty of buzz around Coupa CafĂŠ, which won for Best Coffee
House, Solo Dining and WiFi Hot Spot.
University Avenue, delights palates
with its falafel, shawerma wrap (sliced
lamb and beef) and kufta kabab plate
(minced lamb and beef with spices).
Information on Go Go Gyro can be
found in the Best New Restaurant
category. 425 S. California Ave.,
Palo Alto; 650-321-8189; and 209
University Ave., Palo Alto; 650-2890866. kanzeman.com/medwraps

Hall of Fame: 1st Year
Frankie Valli knew: Greece is the
word, is the word that you heard.
Greece is the time, is the place, is
the motion. Greece is the way we are
feeling. Palo Altans have been feeling
it for years, thanks to Evvia, which
transports patrons to the best of
the Mediterranean through its fresh,
imaginative cuisine and charming, sophisticated decor. 420 Emerson St.,
Palo Alto; 650-326-0983. evvia.net

Mexican Restaurant
Upscale Mexican eatery Reposado
would be a great place to relax and

unwind after a long day of living la vida
loca. Diners say they love the Mexicanfusion seafood dishes, especially ceviche de huachinango (pacific snapper)
and camarones al ajillo. Happy Hour is
especially popular with the afternoon
crowd, who devour half-off chilitos rellenos, queso fundido and freshly made
guacamole. Canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make it in the evening? Reposado opens at 11:30 a.m.
for lunch on weekdays and at 11 a.m.
for brunch on weekends. Celiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s earned
a close second place with voters.
236 Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto; 650833-3151. reposadorestaurant.com

2011
Open daily for lunch and dinner
from 11:30am
For reservations and menu
visit CASCALRESTAURANT.COM
or call 650-940-9500

A PENINSULA TRADITION SINCE 1970

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
Puebla, Mexico, natives Hector and
Helena Sol know well the rhythm of
California Avenue. Their 11-year-old
establishment Palo Alto Sol is often
bustling with customers who come
during lunch and dinner hours to indulge in Puebla-style Mexican dishes.
Regulars savor favorites like mole po(continued on next page)

Meal Under $20
No need to sing for your supper,
when the whole meal â&#x20AC;&#x201D; even classic
Thanksgiving fare of sliced freshroasted turkey with a side of mashed
potatoes and mushrooms and gravy
â&#x20AC;&#x201D; runs under 20 bucks. Plutoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s is famous for its salads, in two sizes, with
a choice of seven toppings (from jicama and beets to chopped apple and
roasted fennel), with or without meat
(chicken, turkey or grilled roast beef).
The atmosphere is casual, noisy, collegiate, and the foodâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s available to go.
482 University Ave., Palo Alto; 650853-1556. plutosfreshfood.com

2011
&)78',-2)7)
6)78%96%28
-Palo Alto Weekly,
-Mountain View Voice

Mediterranean
Restaurant
Long lines out the door at Mediterranean Wraps in Palo Alto and Go
Go Gyro in Los Altos are worth the
wait. Weekly voters chose both as
the areaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best Mediterranean restaurants. Mediterranean Wraps, with
locations on California Avenue and

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It’s tough being the New Kids On The
Block in today’s economic climate.
Will a new eatery be a one-hit wonder or become a classic? Los Altos’
Go Go Gyro, where wholesome,
traditional Greek food meets modern
convenience, seems sure to be more
than a flash in the pan, as voters have
chosen it Best New Restaurant. Like
the songs of the similarly named girl
group The Go Gos, Go Go Gyro is at
the top of the charts. 4546 El Camino Real, Los Altos; 650-948-GoGo.
gogogyro.com

Outdoor Dining
Locals just don’t stop believin’ in
Café Borrone, which won for Outdoor Dining and is in the Hall of Fame
for Solo Dining. No matter the time
of day, the endless line of customers that often extends into the patio
area of the cafe is a good indication
of its stable popularity. Locals frequent the family-owned cafe for its
delicious Taylor Maid coffee and hot
sandwiches, or the recently added
dinner specials, served from 5 p.m.
Tuesday-Saturday. And, of course,
the smorgasbord of places to sit and
eat or drink outside. 1010 El Camino
Real, Menlo Park; 650-327-0830.
cafeborrone.com

High-class dining is not just for material girl Madonna. Tamarine entices
downtown diners with its classy ambiance and Vietnamese-fusion fare.
Customers say the food is well worth
the pretty penny, especially the salt
and pepper calamari, shaking beef,
clay pot cod and empress rice. Looking to take home a touch of Tamarine’s elegance? Patrons can even
purchase the artwork on display.
546 University Ave., Palo Alto; 650325-8500. tamarinerestaurant.com

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
You don’t have to be rich to be
Prince’s girl. You don’t have to be rich
to eat at Evvia either, but if you’re
feeling extravagant for a night, there’s
no place like it. The downtown Greek
establishment has helped Palo Altans

Support Local Business

Café Borrone doesn’t serve black-eyed peas, but it did win for Best
Outdoor Dinning and is in the Hall of Fame for Solo Dining.
impress their first dates for years.
Act your age (not your shoe size) and
order the souvlaki, lamb chops and
one of many decadent desserts. 420
Emerson St., Palo Alto; 650-3260983. evvia.net

Romantic Restaurant
It’s quite an accomplishment for such
a packed, lively place like Evvia to be
considered the most romantic restaurant in town. And yet, somehow,
it’s true. If you’re trying to get away
into the night, the whole package of
world-class food, atmosphere and
service at Evvia might be enough to
make you say, “I think we’re alone
now.” Just be sure to plan ahead and
book your getaway a couple of days
in advance. 420 Emerson St., Palo
Alto; 650-326-0983. evvia.net

Hall of Fame: 1st Year
A love-struck fellow eager to romance
his new flame may be inclined to grab
a guitar and serenade her outside a
lofty bedroom window. But there’s
an easier way. Just ask the patrons
of St. Michael’s Alley, the Hall of
Famer for Best Romantic Restaurant.
St. Michael’s features a serene atmosphere, tasty food and a robust wine
list. Eating by candlelight is common
and the restaurant’s polished décor
only adds to the romantic ambiance.
And don’t forget to top your romantic
evening off with a St. Michael’s favorite — tiramisu. 140 Homer Ave., Palo
Alto; 650-326-2530. stmikes.com

Solo Dining
Popular Coupa Café also scored
accolades for coffee service. See the
complete listing in the Coffee House
category.

Going solo has worked out for a lot
of musicians: Paul Simon, Neil Young
and Phil Collins, to name a few. And
going solo for a good place to eat
often works out as well, especially
when that place is the uber-popular
Café Borrone. General manager
Marina Borrone, who owns the cafe
with husband and chef Josh Pebbles,
as well as her parents, remarks that,
“Our guests always comment on the

vibrant, uplifting energy that our environment offers.” The cafe often serves
as a stage for Clint Baker and the All
Stars, who play New Orleans-style
jazz and “who have stirred it up (there)
for over 20 years,” she says. 1010 El
Camino Real, Menlo Park; 650327-0830. cafeborrone.com

Steak
It ain’t much you’re asking, if you want
the truth. You just want your steak
to be both tender and flavorful. Like
Queen, you want it all, and you want it
now. So get a table at Fleming’s and
order the bone-in filet, which isn’t on
the menu. The bone brings full flavor
back into the normally blander, but
more tender cut, making this steak
the best of both worlds. You can have
it all. #2 Stanford Shopping Center,
Palo Alto; 650-329-8457.
flemingssteakhouse.com

Hall of Fame: 1st Year
If you’re in the mood (for steak) and
the rhythm is right, take a slow ride to
Sundance the Steakhouse for the
slow-roasted prime rib. The Certified
Angus house specialty, served with
au jus and creamy horseradish, might
as well be called the city specialty
by now. It cooks for more than eight
hours, and you may want to savor
it for just as long. 1921 El Camino
Real, Palo Alto; 650-321-6798.
sundancethesteakhouse.com

Sunday Brunch
A classic local choice for Sunday
brunch, St. Michael’s Alley oozes
charm and the passion of a kitchen
with high standards. Since opening
its newer lunch-and-dinner venue at

Best of Palo Alto 2011
Homer and High two years ago, St.
Mike’s reserves “the annex,” a small
dining room on Emerson Street, for
private functions and Sunday’s midday repast. All manner of eggs and
pancakes as well as salads, pasta
and sandwiches — but not reservations — are available in the 10 a.m. to
2 p.m. brunch window. St. Michael’s
Alley also shined for ambiance. 806
Emerson St., Palo Alto. 650-3262530. stmikes.com

Sushi/Japanese
Restaurant
Fuki Sushi was named a favorite by
readers for its professional standards
of service, dedication to authenticity,
delicately calming geometrical decor
and ultra-fresh seafood. Customers
can enjoy their tataki, donburi, gyoza,
udon and tempura in the more spacious dining areas, or reserve smaller
tatami rooms for private meals,
optionally followed by a relaxing, romantic kona coffee ice cream dessert.
4119 El Camino Real, Palo Alto;
650-494-9383. fukisushi.com

It’s often a beautiful day for patrons of St. Michael’s Alley, winner for
Best Sunday Brunch and in the Hall of Fame for Romantic Restaurant.

Hall of Fame: 1st Year
Delicious food and an inviting atmosphere have earned Thaiphoon
induction into the Best Of Palo Alto
Hall of Fame. The downtown restaurant has tantalized eaters with a
winning menu that includes Kung-Pao
Chicken, Musamun Beef Curry and
Lychee Curry Prawns. Executive Chef
Wanna Vongampai has more than 25
years of experience and uses only the

Lumi Gardner of the always-in-vogue Fuki Sushi, winner for Best Sushi/
Japanese Restaurant.
fornia-style fare. See the complete listing in the California Cuisine category.

Wine Bar
A cozy and classy spot for a glass
of wine, the downtown Wine Room
also offers a small menu of snacks
including a cheese plate, stuffed piquillo peppers and marinated olives. But
wine, domestic and imported, is the
real star here. The front room includes

a bar as well as seating at small high
tables or in comfortable stuffed chairs
and benches. A back room offers sofa
and easy-chair seating, and a fireplace. 520 Ramona St.,
Palo Alto; 650-462-1968.
thepawineroom.com

(continued on next page)

*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU Page 43

Best of Palo Alto 2011
B E S T

Men At Work

A U T O C A R E

Services
Auto Care
Fixing a car is often a tough deal. It
can come fraught with expense and
inconvenience. But Larry’s Autoworks soothes this common headache by providing top-notch service
for all sorts of automobiles, and the
experienced mechanics give sound
advice. Dave’s Auto Repair cruised in
to a close second place. 2526 Leghorn St., Mountain View; 650-9685202. autoworks.com

Chiropractors
If, like Matchbox 20, you find yourself
bent, so scared that you’ll never get
put back together, you might consider
a trip to Peak Performance Chiropractic in Menlo Park. Dr. Bill Tarr
and the team offer a plethora of wellness and preventive-care services to
the bent masses, including help with
headaches, stress management and
diet. 325 Sharon Park Drive,
Menlo Park; 650-233-7333.
peakperformancei.com

Day Spa

Being in tune is part of the job for Laurie and Larry Moore of Larry’s Autoworks, winner for Best Auto Care.

www.cityofpaloalto.org/utilities

Playing soccer has taught
me that no one wins
a game alone.

Patrons at Watercourse Way may
leave the spa with visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads — especially if they’ve gotten a sugarplum
facial masque after their dry-brush
skin exfoliation and cranberry-pomegranate sugar scrub. Life is sweet
for Weekly readers at serene Watercourse Way; they’ve voted it Best
Day Spa for these and other services,
which include hot-tub soaks, facials,
paraffin treatments and massages.
By the way, Watercourse is also in the
Hall of Fame for Best Massage. 165
Channing Ave., Palo Alto; 650-4622000. watercourseway.com

Dentist
The faces behind the goggles may
change, but the smiles are the same
at the Palo Alto Dental Group, voted Best Dentist. Patients rave about

friendly, professional and high-quality
service from the six dentists in the
group, who share a pool of six hygienists. Established in 1934, the group
practice has its own parking lot at the
corner of Byron Street and University
Avenue. 511 Byron St., Palo Alto;
650-323-1381.
paloaltodentalgroup.com

Dry Cleaner
Rocking out too hard last night? Left
a stained, wrinkled shirt with missing
buttons at the bottom of the laundry
hamper? AJ’s Cleaners promises
to dry-clean that disaster to starchy
perfection. They will even pick it up
and deliver it back to you. No wonder
they were voted the best dry cleaner
around. 3175 Middlefield Road,
Palo Alto; 650-494-1550.
ajsquickcleaners.com

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
Have a dress that no one can get
that stain out of? And need it done
for a reasonable price with a quality
dry cleaner? It is a no-brainer to try
Charleston Cleaners, which has
landed in the Hall of Fame for dry
cleaning. Known for its clean and
welcoming store complete with a
bowl of Hershey kisses waiting on the
countertop, this dry cleaner is a family business that has fit seamlessly in
Palo Alto. 3900 Middlefield Road,
Palo Alto; 650-424-1113.

Fitness Classes
If your groove thing is out of shape,
you may want to visit Uforia Studios. Founded by two former competitive athletes, the studio offers
high-energy workouts to sculpt and
tone disco divas and dudes. Whether
you attend an early-morning cycling
class or an evening Zumba (Latin fusion dance) lesson, Uforia is flexible
— all classes are drop-ins. 819 Ramona St., Palo Alto; 650-329-8794.
uforiastudios.com

“Teamwork” best describes how the City of
Palo Alto Utilities addresses emergencies such
as gas and water leaks. We are usually on the
scene for any issues within two hours and for all
emergencies, such as gas leaks, within 20 minutes.
My field team goes the extra mile and works
round the clock during emergencies to take
care of Palo Alto residents and businesses at
all hours and in all types of weather. My
team is here for you when you need us most.
And I think that’s a win for everyone.
For gas, water or sewer emergencies
call (650) 329-2579.

—Jorge Silva
Supervisor,
Water-Gas-Sewer Operations

The Palo Alto Dental Group made voters smile, winning for Best
Dentist.
Page 44ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

Best of Palo Alto 2011
Thank you fo
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as
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Whether it’s newlyweds or the family
mutt, the place to frame up that glam
shot is University Art. The mainstay
of Hamilton Avenue is a favorite place
for frames from gilded to inlay. For
60 years, University Art has helped
customers design the finest setting
for art and memorabilia — including
three-dimensional objects such as
sports medals and jerseys. All of the
work is done in-house and University
Art uses only archival materials to last.
267 Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto; 650328-3500. universityart.com

s
ting u Best F
i

tne

Frame Shop

vo

2011

Gym
With a state-of-the-art fitness center,
gym, indoor and outdoor pools, yoga
studio, exercise studio — even its
own “children’s cove” and physical
therapist — the Oshman Family
JCC was this year’s top choice for
best gym. The sleek, ultra-modern
and immaculate sports-and-wellness
complex offers more than 85 weekly
classes, from aqua fitness to Zumba,
most of them free to members. 3921
Fabian Way, Palo Alto; 650-2238700. paloaltojcc.org

Hair Salon
You can make an appointment — or
not — at Hair International, voted
best hair salon. Regardless, owner
Pam Decharo and staff offer a friendly
welcome and seem to fit everyone
in, even on crowded weekend afternoons, or prom day. There’s a happy
bustle to the place, and an international cast of stylists — in keeping
with the globe-trotting clientele that
frequents the mall. Hair International
also won for Men’s Haircut. #232
Stanford Shopping Center, Palo
Alto; 650-324-2007. hairintl.com

Hotel
Think “star treatment” and “convenience” at the same time and the best
place to stay when visiting Palo Alto is
Garden Court Hotel, readers say.
The Garden Court is just steps away
from the downtown action. Marbleslab bathrooms and Rivolta Carmignani luxury Italian linens make visitors
feel like rock stars. There’s a state-ofthe-art fitness spa and five-star beds
with comfortable down mattress toppers. Hypoallergenic bedding is available upon request. 520 Cowper St.,
Palo Alto; 650-543-2211.
gardencourt.com

Uforia Studios may be the future of physical health, winning for Best
Fitness Classes.

2011

Manicure/Pedicure
When your hands and feet start feeling the need for a little TLC, a manicure/pedicure combination is the perfect solution. Present them with two
tickets to paradise — Lavande Nail
Spa, that is. This favored nail spa at
Stanford Shopping Center offers more
than just an ordinary polish change.
Enjoy their “rosy rosie manicure” or
“double mint pedicure” to rejuvenate
the life back into your hands and feet.
#240 Stanford Shopping Center,
Palo Alto; 650-289-0533.
lavandenailspa.com

Hall of Fame: 3rd Year
A manicure/pedicure duo is exactly what a girl wants and what a
girl needs. Palo Alto’s leading nail
salon, LaBelle Day Spa and Salon, provides a clean and comfort(continued on next page)

University Art set the stage for framing stardom, winning for Best Frame
Shop.

AJ’s Green Cleaners
395 S. California Ave.
Palo Alto
650-323-9068

www.ajscleaners.com
*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊU Page 45

Best of Palo Alto 2011
(continued from previous page)
able atmosphere for a relaxing nail
service. Over the past 30 years, from
polish changes to clinical treatments,
LaBelle succeeds in delivering the
most satisfying manicure/pedicure
experience. #95 Town and Country
Village, Palo Alto; 650-327-6964;
or #36 Stanford Shopping Center,
Palo Alto; 650-326-8522.
labelledayspas.com

Massage
When stress becomes overwhelming
and starts to take a toll on your body,
it is time to unwind and tranquillize
your spirit for a relaxing therapeutic
massage at the Massage Therapy
Center in Palo Alto. Offer their experienced massage therapists a “soul
to squeeze” and you will soon start
to feel your body rejuvenate, revive
and energize. 368 S. California Ave.,
Palo Alto; 650-328-9480.
massagetherapypaloalto.com

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year

Keli Deitrich and Nathan Hanley add to the spirit of Watercourse Way, winner for Best Day Spa and Hall of
Fame winner for Best Massage.

www.cityofpaloalto.org/utilities

I’m working to provide a healthier
environment for my kids—and yours.
It’s very satisfying to know I am helping the City of Palo Alto be more energy
efﬁcient and ﬁnd resource solutions that lower our carbon emissions. But what
really drives me is my children. I want them to grow up in a world that is cleaner
than the one I grew up in.
The efforts we make today will have a lasting effect on generations to come. That’s
why my work involving electric vehicles and smart grid applications are both small
steps toward the greater goal of a healthier Palo Alto, and a cleaner planet.
For information on sustainability and renewable energy visit
CityOfPaloAlto.org/utilities and click on “Sustainable Electric Resources.”

—Shiva Swaminathan
Senior Resource Planner, Electricity

Page 46ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

When the chords of life beat you
down, there is nothing more satisfying than a soothing massage. And no
one does it better than Watercourse
Way, a Palo Alto stress-buster for
more than three decades. The Hall of
Fame spa features beautiful, calming
décor and a top-notch staff of highly
trained massage therapists. Every
style of massage is offered, from
relaxing Swedish to rigorous deep tissue. Try the new couples massage or
hot stone treatments. Inner harmony
is on its way. 165 Channing Ave.,

Palo Alto; 650-462-2000.
watercourseway.com

Men’s Haircut
Diversity-driven salon Hair International cut through the competition for
hair care. See the complete listing in
the Hair Salon category.

Orthodontist
What you want, baby she’s got it:
Voters gave some R.E.S.P.E.C.T. to
Dr. Stacey Quo of Midpeninsula
Orthodontics, choosing her again as
Palo Alto’s best orthodontist. Patients
praise her office’s organization, attentiveness and professionalism, qualities
that make even the most reluctant
brace-face smile. Quo has worked
as an orthodontist in the Bay Area
since 1994 (in Palo Alto since 1997)
and currently lectures at both UCSF
and Stanford. 738 Middlefield Road,
Palo Alto; 650-328-1600. orthoquo.
com

Personal Trainers
After snacking on one too many
“eminems,” it would be best to drop
by The 3rd Door to meet with its
friendly personal-training experts.
Through its one-on-one professional
training you will learn proper techniques not based on the latest fitness
trends but rather ones that embody
scientific principle. Soon you will start
to see a new man (or woman) in the
mirror. 131 Lytton Ave., Palo Alto;
650-352-1241. the3rddoor.com

Best of Palo Alto 2011

2010

2011

Klara

Best Hair
Salon

2009

Thank you for voting
for us!

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2005

(650) 323-0735 s
1010 Alma Street, Menlo Park

Hair International is the KISS of local salons, winning for Best Hair Salon and Best Men’s Haircut.

Plumber
It’s established that Pearl Jam appreciates the importance of an even flow.
One can assume that if they lived in
Palo Alto, they would entrust their flow
to Palo Alto Plumbing, Heating &
Air. With more than 30 years of local
experience, the family-run business
responds 24 hours a day to emergencies of all sizes. 716 San Antonio
Road, Unit F, Palo Alto; 650-8563400. paloaltoplumbheatandair.
com

son St., Palo Alto; 650-324-9600.
skinspirit.com

Travel Agency
Ground control to Major Tom: You
should have used local travel agency
Cardoza-Bungey, which employs
an accredited space agent to book
Palo Altans on the world’s first commercial space flights. For those averse
to floating in a most peculiar way,
they’re also listed in the top 1 percent
of earth-bound travel agencies, with
luxury trips to Hawaii, Africa and

Value Hotel/Motel
It doesn’t have to cost an arm and a
leg to spend a night in a conveniently
located spot. Palo Alto’s Creekside
Inn bills itself as “a boutique hotel in
the center of Silicon Valley,” offering
everything from terrycloth robes to

®

(continued on page 49)

Shoe Repair
There’s something very telling about
how well people care for their shoes
— especially if they’ve got a job interview lined up. Before hitting the pavement, it might be wise to check in with
Robert at Midtown Shoe Repair to
see if he can work one of his miracles.
Besides re-soling, re-heeling and
generally sprucing up, he can replicate a favorite pair, fix your luggage
or supply you with a replacement for
that snapped lace. 2796 Middlefield
Road, Palo Alto; 650-329-8171.

BAR / LOUNGE &
LATIN AMERICAN
RESTAURANT

THANK YOU.
La Bodeguita is honored to have been voted
the “Best Of” in two categories this year
and we invite you to join us for a celebratory mojito.
Throughout the month of September, we’ll donate
one dollar to our local public schools for each mojito sold.
It’s our way of saying thanks for 14 years in a community
that we believe is truly the best.

Skin Care
A healthy, glowing complexion is
the key to achieving a younger and
energized look. With a clean spa-like
environment and professional skincare clinic fusion, SkinSpirit of Palo
Alto provides treatments to achieve
that perfect look. SkinSpirit offers
professional, non-surgical anti-aging
procedures as well as designed facials. Its advanced skin care will wash
away any visible fatigue and leave you
feeling 10 years younger. 701 Emer-

The Garden Court Hotel proved it knows how to soothe weary travelers
with a win for Best Hotel.

Jennifer Leung of Lavande Nail Spa, which struck a chord with voters as
Best Manicure/Pedicure.
(continued from page 47)
free Wi-Fi and local hybrid-car service, all in a garden setting, and for
rooms starting at under $100. Special
packages include the “Fan-tastic,”
catering to Stanford athletics fans,
and the American Breakfast Getaway,
starting at $125. That one includes
breakfast as well as complimentary
evening wine at Cibo’s next door.

3400 El Camino Real, Palo Alto;
650-493-2411. creekside-inn.com

Veterinarian
Thousands of pets for nearly 50 years
have received attentive care at MidPeninsula Animal Hospital. From
holistic care and acupuncture to the
best in veterinary technology in the
(continued on next page)

Lucia Miracchi (left) and Karen Buehler of Massage Therapy Center, which earned the spotlight for Best Massage.

Breakfast
Lunch
A Relaxing
Afternoon
Apertivo
Dinner

ART GALLERY COFFEEHOUSE

Live Music

Thank you Almanac and Weekly readers for voting for us!

2011

s Best Casual Dining
s Best Outdoor dining
s Best Dessert
s Best Solo dining
s Best Live Music
- Hall of Fame
s Best Place to Meet People
s Best Independent Coffee/Tea House

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
Creatures of all types, from ferrets to
horses, receive veterinary care at Hall
of Fame winner Adobe Animal Hospital. A year ago Adobe relocated to
a new building (the former site of Elephant Pharm) on El Camino Real and
still offers everything for critters from
24-hour care to puppy pointers. 4470
El Camino Real, Los Altos; 650948-9661. adobe-animal.com

Yoga
Become one with the mind, body and
soul and Be-Yoga. Palo Alto’s popular yoga studio, Be-Yoga, provides

classes for all levels of experience.
The wide variety of classes throughout the day makes it flexible enough
to fit around your schedule. If you
base your workout on the amount you
sweat instead of the number of calories you burn, be sure to make it a priority to sign up for one of the hot yoga
classes. 440 Kipling St., Palo Alto;
650-905-9016. be-yoga.com

Hall of Fame: 1st Year
At Darshana Yoga, Palo Alto’s yoga
leader since 2006, you will learn the
proper breathing and posing techniques to purify and interconnect the
mind, body and soul. Darshana provides basic to advanced Iyengar and
flow-styled classes in a studio with a
clean ambience, peaceful music, natural lighting and calming scent. You
will leave feeling tranquil and elevated.
654 High St., Palo Alto; 650-3259642. darshanayoga.com

Mid-Peninsula Animal Hospital earned applause (and animal appreciation) for being the Best Veterinarian.

It takes a lot of planning and negotiating to
ensure the natural gas we use every day arrives
safely and on budget. It’s part science, part
economics, and part stock market.
My inspiration for studying engineering and
energy planning came from my high school
chemistry teacher. I hope I too can inspire
young women who have an interest in
science to chase their dreams and
make a difference.
Gas supply planning details at
CityofPaloAlto.org/utilities —click
on “Gas Utility Long Term Plan.”

Johnny Cash
Retail Shopping
Beauty Supply
Need some clip-in bangs? How
about something more ordinary, like
nail polish or regular make-up? You
can find all that and more at Peninsula Beauty Supply, voted best
beauty supply store. The immaculate,
light-filled shop at University Avenue
and Ramona Street holds a trove of
essentials â&#x20AC;&#x201D; including every kind
of hairbrush you can imagine â&#x20AC;&#x201D; as
well as more offbeat items (28-day
mascara, anyone?). A kidsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; corner,
complete with little-girl nail polish and
wind-up toys, can keep little ones
interested while Mom shops. 250
University Ave., Palo Alto; 650-3271454. peninsulabeauty.com

Bike Shop
Get out on the road quick. Palo Alto
Bicycles offers solutions to all biking
needs. Want a classy beach cruiser
for that quick run to the grocery
store? Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got it. Or a serious
road bike for a real adventure? No
problem. Complete with bike servicing and plenty of bike-ready clothing,
this shop is the fix to any bike-related
problem. Mikeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bikes raced in to a
close second place. 171 University
Ave., Palo Alto; 650-328-7411.
paloaltobicyles.com

Bookstore
Keplerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Books and Magazines
made a big change recently to its
popular author-talks program. No
longer able to offer free admission to
the talks, Keplerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s began requiring
audience members who are not store
members to buy the event book or
a gift card. Owner Clark Kepler said
this change hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hurt attendance.
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Anecdotally, we have heard comments from customers like: â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;It makes
sense; people ought to be willing to
pay something,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; and â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a fair
amount to ask,â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? he said. And Keplerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
remains well-liked with Palo Alto readers, who once again voted it the best
local bookstore. 1010 El Camino
Real, Menlo Park; 324-4321.
Keplers.com

Boutique
This charming downtown shop remains a treasured alcove for tasteful
and eclectic gifts with Native-American flavors. Its dazzling collection of
hand-carved Zuni figurines, beads,
necklaces, gemstones and bracelets
makes it a popular destination for
both art lovers and residents searching for the perfect anniversary gift.
Shady Lane racked up three awards
this year, with readers voting it the
(continued on next page)

Sarah Langlais (left) and Stephanie Wright of Keplerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Books and Magazines, a classic hit with voters as the
Best Bookstore.

Eyewear
You won’t be sorry you need glasses
if you stumble upon Lux Eyewear,
voted best eyewear for the third year
in a row. The light-filled, upscale shop
on El Camino Real stocks friendly service and unusually stylish brands that
aren’t available everywhere, including
the French brands Lafont and Face
a Face, ic! Berlin and Oliver Peoples.
1805 El Camino Real, Palo Alto;
650-324-3937. luxpaloalto.com

Florist
If you’re going to San Francisco, be
sure to wear flowers in your hair from
Stanford Floral Design. The shop
was founded in 1994 by Werner Rogmans, a sixth-generation florist who
started his career in his native Germany, where he received a master’s
degree in floristry. Today, his store is a
Hamilton Avenue staple. Regular customers rave about Werner’s artistry
and creativity — and his ever-present
canine companion, appropriately
named Stanford. Voters picked Stanford Florist a close second place. 433
Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto; 650-4628230. stanfordfloraldesign.net

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
David Cantwell of the ever-soulful Shady Lane, winner for Best Boutique, Best Gift Shop and Best Jewelry
Store.

Whether you choose from the array of
brightly-colored flora, dried flower arrangements or even gifts, you’ll notice

there’s something special about Michaela’s Flower Shop, a downtown
Palo Alto mainstay for more than 40
years. Perhaps it’s the history — the
shop was formerly named Stapleton
Florist and run by a beloved couple of
the same name. Maybe it’s the magic
of brightly colored peonies, roses and
carnations that have delighted many a
newlywed and countless prom-bound
teenagers. Can you guess the secret?
453 Waverley St., Palo Alto; 650321-5390. michaelasflowershop.
com

Gift Shop
Palo Alto gem Shady Lane was also
named the top boutique in town. See
the complete listing in the Boutique
category.

Green Business
Environmental responsibility is standard practice for Palo Alto Hardware, which also hammered the
competition for hardware. See the
complete listing in the Hardware Store
category.

Hardware Store
Whether you’re looking to replace a
light bulb, discover composting or get
down to the nuts and bolts for a major
home-improvement project, Palo
Alto Hardware is the perfect place
to start. The downtown store isn’t just
the city’s top destination for hardware,
it is also an eco-friendly rock star with
solar panels on its roof, fluorescent
lights on its ceilings and a wide range
of green gadgets on its shelves. No
wonder our readers voted it both the

Home Furnishings
and Décor
English pop band Madness sings
about “Our house, in the middle of our
street.” But the British rockers would
be wise to journey out to Palo Alto to
decorate said house. Crate & Barrel has everything a home hungers
for — comfy couches, soft throw
pillows, sturdy tables, vibrant lights.
Whether simply stocking your kitchen
with new dishware or adding new
design elements to the entire home,
Crate & Barrel can help. #530 Stanford Shopping Center, Palo Alto;
650-321-7800. crateandbarrel.com

Hall of Fame: 3rd Year
Ever since it opened in East Palo
Alto in 2003, IKEA has been a haven for everything a home needs.
The multi-level store sports such a
wealth of house-related offerings that
directional arrows on the floor are required to help shoppers find their way.
Beds, chairs, tables, desks, cabinets
— even small household items and
children’s furniture are available in
abundance, all with that unique IKEA
touch. 1700 E. Bayshore Road, East
Palo Alto; 650-323-4532. ikea.com

Men’s Apparel
Suit up your inner rock star. Need
classy ties and a snazzy suit or a
casual shirt and comfortable shoes?
Name it and they probably have it
at Nordstrom. And with so many
brands to mix, match and choose
from, this store is a clear winner in
men’s apparel. Nordstrom also swept
home awards for shoes and women’s
apparel. #550 Stanford Shopping
Center, Palo Alto; 650-323-5111.
nordstrom.com

New Retail Business
A new kid is on the block. Acme
Party Box offers sustainable solutions for any event. Whether it is a
child’s birthday bash or a happening
picnic, Acme sells the raw materials
you need. And true to its sustainability
pledge, everything can be washed,
reused or recycled. No trash always
makes for a rocking good time. #102
Town & Country Village, Palo Alto;
650-618-4682. acmepartybox.com

Nursery/Garden Supply
With the motto “we guarantee success,” it is no wonder SummerWinds is a winner in the best nursery
category. Even its name evokes a
golden afternoon spent basking under
the sun in a blooming garden. A wide
variety of plants, including California
natives, are available, and the knowledgeable staff is on hand to help even
(continued on next page)

Palo Alto Hardware knows all about heavy metal — it earned honors for Best Hardware Store and Best Green
Business.

When Scooby-Doo is out of Scooby
Snacks, Shaggy’s best option is to
head over to Palo Alto’s best petsupply store. Serving the Midpeninsula since 1986, Pet Food Depot
is known for its large variety of pet
food and supplies, as well as taking special orders. The friendly and
knowledgeable staff will make sure to
answer any question in order to make
your visit quick and convenient. Once
Shaggy makes a visit, Scooby Snacks
will not be Scooby’s only favorite
snack anymore. 3127 El Camino
Real, Palo Alto; 650-852-1277.
petfooddepot.com

Pharmacy

Shoe Store
Longtime retail haven Nordstrom
also earned the top prize for men’s
wear. See the complete listing in the
Men’ Apparel category.

Sporting Goods
and Apparel
Need to find another way to enjoy
summer? Well, Palo Alto Sport
Shop and Toy World has got it.
With a huge range of toys and sporting equipment, children and adults
alike can find something that will fit
the bill. A family-owned business
since its founding in 1930, the store
remains a fixture of downtown Palo
Alto. Not surprisingly, the shop also
scored for Best Toy Store. 526 Waverley St., Palo Alto; 650-328-8555.
toyandsport.com

New Deck Construction
and Repairs,
Restoration and
Preservation
Locally Owned Since 1990

800.546.WASH
800.546.9274

LIC.# 955364
EMAIL:ADDYCLEAN@AOL.COM

Page 54ÊUÊÕ}ÕÃÌÊ£]ÊÓä££ÊUÊ*>ÊÌÊ7iiÞ

Lux Eyewear is heads above the competition, winning Best Eyewear.

Whether sneaking in for a late-night
snack run or stopping by the pharmacy, Walgreens offers the remedy for
many household situations. Recently
rebuilt following a 2007 fire, the newand-improved Walgreens is stocked
with myriad health needs, from cough
syrup to calamine lotion and much
more. As a winner of multiple “Best
Of” awards, the drug store proves
itself to be a Palo Alto staple. 300
University Ave., Palo Alto; 650-5669723. walgreens.com

Support
Palo Alto Weekly’s
coverage of our
community.
Memberships begin
at only 17¢ per day
Join today:
SupportLocalJournalism.org

Lisa Fulker (left) and Cathy Keyani of Acme Party Box, which
celebrated a win for Best New Retail Business.

Hall of Fame: 2nd Year
Some people hear “rock and roll”
and think “rockclimbing and cycling.”
And Best Of Hall of Famer REI is
the ultimate go-to place for all sorts
of athletic goodies. Whether snowboarding, hiking, kayaking or simply
going for a quiet bike ride, REI has it
all. REI features an array of products
from some of the sporting world’s
best manufacturers, including Burton, Patagonia and Under Armour,
among others. Need clothes for that
upcoming camping trip? REI has
shirts, boots, socks, pants and more
for men, women and kids. And if you
get lost in the massive store, fear
not. REI sells GPS devices, too. 2450
Charleston Road, Mountain View;
650-969-1938. rei.com

Stationery Store
Palo Alto boasts so many top-tier stationery stores that readers had a hard
time picking a clear winner. This year,

Village Stationers on California
Avenue and Paper Source at Town
& Country Village are sharing the
trophy. Each won our readers’ hearts
with a vast selection of post cards,
elegant knickknacks, stylish gift wrap
and, of course, rocking stationery.
Village Stationers: 310 California
Ave., Palo Alto, 650-326-7970. Paper Source: #63 Town & Country
Village, Palo Alto; 650-324-9700.
paper-source.com

Toy Store
Playtime is par for the course for Palo
Alto Sport Shop and Toy World,
which also won for sports goodies.
See the complete listing in the Sporting Goods and Apparel category.

Women’s Apparel
Three-category champ Nordstrom
also earned applause for shoes and
men’s apparel. See the complete listing in the Men’s Apparel category.

Best of Palo Alto 2011

THANK YOU PALO ALTO â&#x20AC;&#x201D;
BEST NEW RETAIL BUSINESS!

2011

8Q`Â­_
<M^`e
Hold your next celebration in our cheerful
and intimate Party Room!

w w w.TheVCH.co m
Top-notch performances earned TheatreWorks applause as the best place for Live Entertainment.

THANK YOU PALO ALTO!
HOW SWEET OF YOU!

N irvana
Fun Stuff
Art Gallery
While downtown Palo Alto has lost
many art galleries in the recession,
Stanford Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cantor Arts
Center still hosts an array of highquality and often big-name exhibitions
not far away, with admission still free.
Current shows at the museum feature
classical and avant-garde book arts of
the past and present; and a new display of African art, including ancient
pottery and modern Tuareg jewelry.
Last year, the upstairs contemporary
gallery was renovated with splashes
of color and bold works. And, yes,
that eerily realistic Duane Hanson
sculpture of the cement worker
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Daveâ&#x20AC;? came back. Lomita Drive
and Museum Way, Stanford; 650723-4177. museum.stanford.edu

at TheatreWorks, which is now in its
42nd season and puts on shows at
Palo Altoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lucie Stern Theatre and
the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. P.O. Box 50458,
Palo Alto; 650-463-1960.
theatreworks.org

Live Music Venue

Saturdays all summer long, in parks
all over town, local bands provide this
powerful rejuvenating service as part
of Palo Altoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Twilight Concert Series. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s free and thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something
for all ages and tastes. Such a fine
and natural sight. Various locations
in Palo Alto; 650-463-4930.
cityofpaloalto.org/recreation

After a long work week, remember:
you canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t dance and stay uptight. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
a supernatural delight, when everybodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dancing in the moonlight. On

(continued on next page)

2011

2010

Best
Bakery

Best
Desserts

Live Entertainment
Musicals put on by TheatreWorks
come in a medley of styles. There
are the Broadway shows like â&#x20AC;&#x153;Into
the Woods,â&#x20AC;? which the company has
done more than once. And the new
takes on old favorites, like the 2007
hit musical version of Jane Austenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
novel â&#x20AC;&#x153;Emma.â&#x20AC;? Theater also rocks at
TheatreWorks; the musical â&#x20AC;&#x153;Wheelhouse,â&#x20AC;? about a traveling rock band, is
set to open in June 2012. Plays both
serious and comic are also a fixture

local | fresh | family

Thank You for Voting us

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Best Of â&#x20AC;? for Fresh Produce
We are grateful for your continuous loyalty and support!

Place for
a Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Party
Want to hang out with a hedgehog?
Befriend a bat or bobcat? Since 1934,
the Palo Alto Junior Museum and
Zoo has been delighting local kids
with its animal encounters and handson exhibits. And since itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s available to
rent for private events, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sure to be
a hit for anyone looking to party down
with furry and feathered friends while
increasing their science IQ.
1451 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto;
650-329-2111. cityofpaloalto.org/
jmz

Place to Enjoy
the Outdoors

The Palo Alto Junior Museum and Zoo roared to a win for Best Place
for a Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Party.

A dash around the Stanford Dish
in the foothills exposes one to a symphony of sound â&#x20AC;&#x201D; rustling squirrels,
chirping birds and the occasional rock
anthem thumping out of a joggerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
headphones. The scenic loop has
long been a favorite of runners and
nature strollers who this year voted it
â&#x20AC;&#x153;Best Place to Enjoy the Outdoors.â&#x20AC;?
Wildlife is just part of the fun. Runners
and hikers who brave the Dishâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s steep
ascents are rewarded with scenic
panoramas of Stanford University,
Palo Alto and the San Francisco Baylands. Entrance at Junipero Serra
Boulevard and Stanford Avenue,
Stanford; dish.stanford.edu

WiFi Hot Spot
441UniversityAve.,PaloAlto
shadylanegallery.com
Jewelry

GiftsFromtheHeart

Gifts

Where are the best spots in town
to score Wi-Fi access? The people
have spoken and declared Palo Altoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
Main Library a wireless winner. So
bring a laptop and prepare to put in
your best earbuds, search the Web
and soak in the bookish atmosphere.
Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have your own computer? No
problem; the library offers loaner
laptops and public Internet terminals,
too. Another favorite is Coupa Cafe,
where patrons can text, type and
Skype away while enjoying delicious
coffee, enticing treats and amazing
atmosphere. See the complete listing
for Coupa CafĂŠ in the Coffee House

TALK ABOUT TREES ... Matt
Ritter, author of “A Californian’s
Guide to the Trees Among Us”
and a botany professor at Cal
Poly, San Luis Obispo, will give a
free tree talk and guided tour on
Saturday, Aug. 20, from 9 a.m.
to noon at Gamble Garden Carriage House, 1431 Waverley St.,
Palo Alto. Sponsored by Canopy,
Ritter’s talk will include photographs, stories, history, as well
as cultivation and identification
tips for Palo Alto’s trees. Information: http://canopytrees-efbevent.
eventbrite.com/
ORCHID CARE ... Mark Pendleton, managing grower at
Brookside Orchids in Menlo
Park, will be the guest speaker
for The Garden Club of Los Altos
on Tuesday, Aug. 23, at 1:30
p.m. He will talk about orchid
care and demonstrate repotting
techniques. Cost for guests is
$5. The group meets at Christ
Episcopal Church, 1040 Border
Road, Los Altos. Information:
650-938-9275

OPEN HOME GUIDE 64

PALO ALTO
FESTIVAL
RETURNS TO
UNIVERSITY
AVENUE
AUG. 27-28

a

b

LOOK MA, NO CALORIES ...
Jeanne Maniscalco and Barbara
Kedell will teach a class called
“Desserts Without Calories: Faux
Desserts from Flowers” on Saturday, Aug. 27, from 10 a.m. to
12:30 p.m. at Filoli, 86 Cañada
Road, Woodside. Students will
learn to make flower arrangements posing as cakes, sundaes
and other sweets. Cost, which
includes all classroom materials,
is $80 for nonmembers, $65 for
members. Information: 650-3648300 or www.filoli.org

c

LOCAL HELP ... Coldwell Banker
Residential Brokerage will hold
its annual Habitat for Humanity
fundraiser, which raised more
than $100,000 last year to help
build 32 homes for local low-income families, through Aug. 31.
Goal for this year’s “Homes and
Hope” raffle exceeds $350,000.
Tickets, at $2 each, are available
at all local Coldwell Banker offices. Information: www.CaliforniaMoves.com N
Send notices of news and events related
to real estate, interior design, home
improvement and gardening to Home
Front, Palo Alto Weekly, P.O. Box 1610,
Palo Alto, CA 94302, or e-mail cblitzer@
paweekly.com. Deadline is Thursday at
5 p.m.

by Jeff Carr
alk about surreal: A man recreates Octavio Ocampo’s “Visions of Quixote” in chalk on
a 14-foot by 10-foot parcel of
asphalt — without pay. It’s audacious,
heroic even, and after the festival ends,
passers-by on Tasso Street will be left
with only the vague notion that once,
something extraordinary took place
here, before the rain and the traffic
washed it away.
The valiant knight-errant is Chris
Brake, one of 60 street artists who will
be performing live at the Palo Alto
Festival of the Arts on Aug. 27 and 28.
This year’s festival features gourmet
food vendors, live bands, kids’ activities and a kinetic sculpture garden.
All of that is peripheral, of course,
to the more than 300 artists traveling
from around the country to showcase
and sell their work.
“As cliche as it sounds, there’s truly
something for everybody,” Claudette
Mannina said. She handles marketing
for MLA Productions, which has run
the festival for many years. “We put a
lot of care into ensuring there’s a really
strong variety.”
That includes a strong variety of
artists whose works would make bold,
tasteful additions to any home. For
those looking for potentially functional
pieces to spice up their living quarters,
here are a few artists to watch out for.
Jenny Stepp Roseville artist Jenny
Stepp calls her small, square table a
“statement piece.” It represents the
fusion of her two principal media —
steel and glass — and traverses other
boundaries as well.
“Every bit of this was chosen for aesthetic value,” she says, but one can’t
help envisioning it next to the front
door under a set of keys. It’s undeniably practical. Stepp says she’s most
intrigued by steel, which she manipulates through heat forming, welding
and other means, and she adds glass
for the bright color contrast.
Visitors to Stepp’s booth at the festival can expect to see the table and
a variety of steel-and-glass sculptures
and wall hangings inspired by the artist’s curiosity and personal life path.
Holly Tornheim The term “woodworking” doesn’t really do justice to
Holly Tornheim’s work. That denotes
bed frames, cabinets, the sort of bulky
things that constituted her previous
work as a carpenter.
First introduced to wood when
building a house in the foothills near
her home in Nevada City, Calif., Tornheim was drawn to its feel, its life and
the opportunity to use local materials.
After her daughter was born, though,
she no longer wished to frequent construction sites, so she sought other opportunities to create.
She now produces small wood
sculptures inspired by water, such as
“Wave,” in which her medium almost
resembles the flowing, splashing chocolate from a Hershey’s commercial.
The same smoothness and fluidity
applies to her “Art for the Table” line
as well, which includes bowls, serving
spoons and the like.
Hannie Goldgewicht When admirers learn that Hannie Goldgewicht
grew up in Costa Rica, they nod understandingly. “I can see where you get
your colors,” they say.
The artist, now based in Tarzana in
(continued on 61)

Open Sunday 1:30 - 4:30 PM

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Two story conventional house in very nice condition. 4 bedrooms,
2.5 bathrooms, plus extra room- office or den. Large living
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Southern California, shrugs it off. “I just like
to find new colors,” she said.
She can’t deny the Latin American influence on her work, however. On a trip to Argentina, the boyhood home of her husband,
artist Leo Gotlibowski, she observed women
weaving baskets from pine needles. For her,
the idea to combine pine-needle basketry
with ceramics simply “clicked,” she said.
The bulk of Goldgewicht’s work now consists of two distinct parts: a lower half made
of grog, a sandy ceramic material that lends
itself to intense color and rough, earthy
textures; and an upper half of pine needles
bundled together almost like rope. The result
is a line of vessels that are at once ancient
and entirely new.
Sharon Jackman What stands out about
a Sharon Jackman piece is the tree. Literally,
it snakes up and outward from the rest of the
vessel, as though emerging organically from
the otherwise smooth surface.
Jackman’s “Cliff’s Edge” series, she says,
celebrates the trees she has observed bursting from cliffsides, growing against all
odds.
To create the image, she starts by throwing a bowl on a pottery wheel in her Laguna
Niguel, Orange County, studio. She then
draws a tree in the clay’s leather-hard stage
and carves out the negative space. She applies a soft clay called slip, adds color to
the trunk, fires and coats the surface with
a glaze that causes crystals to grow naturally. The crystalline glaze marks much of
her work, lending it its shine and organic
quality.

Kurt McCracken With Picasso-esque
eyes, squared noses and ribbons of piano
keys, much of Kurt McCracken’s work can
be described in a way that most ceramics
can’t: cubist.
That’s not the only appellation that could
apply to his work, though. One could just
as easily say abstract, sharply colorful and
huge. As part of his repertoire, the Clayton,
Calif.-based artist makes vessels several
feet tall, meaning there’s room for nearly
any combination of colors and forms on his
canvas of clay.
Sandy Kreyer Sandy Kreyer, of Long
Beach, sells her pottery with labels like
“flower pot” and “coffee mug,” which is
helpful, because one would otherwise be
prone to place it on the mantle, under the
spotlight. In fact, Kreyer’s work aims to
bring life and beauty to the mundane tasks,
like holding the cinnamon.
Hand-painted flowers adorn each of her
works, and patterns evoke past luxury —
like a girl’s dream tea set, only classier. N
Editorial Intern Jeff Carr can be emailed
at jcarr@paweekly.com.

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HOME SALES
Home sales are provided by
California REsource, a real estate
information company that obtains
the information from the County
Recorder’s Office. Information
is recorded from deeds after the
close of escrow and published
within four to eight weeks.

The Almanac space at
3525 Alameda de las Pulgas, Menlo Park is for lease.
Up to 4,000 square feet is available,
but smaller spaces can be negotiated.
The space includes plenty of free parking and
faces high-trafﬁc Alameda de las Pulgas.
For more information, contact
Jon Goldman, 329-7988 or Eric Sorensen, 329-7986
at Premier Properties.

FORECLOSURES
Foreclosures are provided by
California REsource, a real estate
information company that obtains
the information from the County
Recorder’s Office. The date is the
recorded date of the deed when
the lender took title to the property.
The price is what the lender paid
for it (usually the mortgage balance
plus foreclosure fees). Each property is now owned by the lender
and is for sale, or will be for sale
soon, individually or through public
auction. Individuals should contact
a Realtor for further information.

“The Palo Alto Weekly is the best paper
you can count on for results.” – Gwen Luce
other publication is delivered to as many homes in the area, and no other
publication’s news coverage focuses specifically on local issues that are
critical to my clients. I have also had great results promoting my open
homes with Palo Alto Online and more recently with “Express”, online
daily news digest. The bottom line is the Palo Alto Weekly offers a true

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For Advertising information, please call Neal Fine at (650) 223-6583.

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;To Be Announcedâ&#x20AC;?--when you least expect it. by Matt Jones

fogster.com

Multimedia Advertising Sales
Embarcadero Media (publisher of
Palo Alto Weekly, The Almanac
and Mountain View Voice) is seeking a self-starter and motivated
individual interested in helping build
an innovative new online program
that helps local businesses market
themselves to the local community.
Our Shop Local websites, powered
by ShopCity.com, offer a unique and
simple platform for business owners
to promote their merchandise, make
special offers, announce special
events, maintain customer lists and
engage in social network marketing
on Facebook and Twitter.

The Shop Local Sales Representative
is responsible for generating revenue
by selling businesses subscriptions/
memberships on the Shop Palo
Alto, Shop Menlo Park and Shop
Mountain View websites and helping
to increase awareness about the program in the broader community.
Specific duties include:
* Heightening awareness of the
Shop Local program through distribution of marketing materials to local
businesses
* Directly selling Shop Local packages by phone and in-person to businesses within the local community,
with an emphasis on locally-owned
establishments
* Increasing the use of the site by
assisting businesses in setting up
profiles, posting offers and understanding the features of the site
* Assist in the marketing of the site
through attendance at business and
community events
* Coordinate sales efforts and work
with Embarcadero Media sales team
as a resource person on the Shop
Local program
The Shop Local Sales Representative
is supervised by the Multimedia
Product Manager.
Compensation is an hourly rate plus
commissions for all sales. Schedule
is flexible, but the target number
of hours per week is 25 (five hours
per day.)
This position is currently considered
temporary, exempt and non-benefited, but may evolve into a permanent
position as the program develops.
To apply, submit a letter describing
why this position is a good fit for
your background and experience
and a resume to Rachel Hatch,
Multimedia Product Manager at
rhatch@embarcaderopublishing.com

Support
Local
Business

The online
guide to
Palo Alto
businesses
Answers on page 73

www.sudoku.name

THE PENINSULAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S FREE
CLASSIFIEDS WEBSITE
TO RESPOND TO ADS
WITHOUT PHONE NUMBERS
GO TO WWW.FOGSTER.COM

MARKETPLACE the printed version of

ShopPaloAlto.com

Multimedia Advertising Sales
The Palo Alto Weekly and
Embarcadero Media are seeking
smart, articulate and dedicated
experienced and entry-level sales professionals who are looking for a fastpaced and dynamic work environment
of people committed to producing
outstanding journalism and effective
marketing for local businesses.
You will join our staff of talented journalists, designers, web programmers
and sales people in our brand new
â&#x20AC;&#x153;greenâ&#x20AC;? Palo Alto headquarters building
in the vibrant California Ave. business
district.

TM

Temporary Change in Classified
Deadlines
Classified deadlines for our Best Of
and Readersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Choice newspapers
have been changed as follows:
-August 19 Weekly Tuesday,
August 16 at Noon
-August 24 Almanac Thursday,
August 18 at Noon
-August 26 Voice
Monday, August 22 at Noon
Early deadlines apply to these newspapers only. Please call 650/3268216 with any questions or to place
your ad. Thank you.

As a Multimedia Account Executive,
you will contact and work with local
businesses to expand their brand
identity and support their future success using marketing and advertising
opportunities available through our 3
marketing platforms: print campaigns,
website advertising & email marketing.

560 Employment
Information

The ideal candidate is an organized
and assertive self-starter who loves
working as a team to beat sales goals
and possesses strong verbal, written,
persuasive and listening interpersonal
skills and can provide exceptional customer service.

Duties, responsibilities and skills
include:
* Understands that the sales process
is more than taking orders
* Has a strong understanding of how
consumers use the Internet
* Can effectively manage and cover a
geographic territory of active accounts
while constantly canvassing competitive media and the market for new
clients via cold calling
* Can translate customer marketing
objectives into creative and effective
multi-media advertising campaigns
* Ability to understand and interpret
marketing data to effectively overcome
client objections
* Understands the importance of
meeting deadlines in an organized
manner
* Can manage and maintain client
information in our CRM database
system, is proficient in Microsoft Word
and Excel and has knowledge of the
Internet and social media
* Ability to adapt objectives, sales
approaches and behaviors in response
to rapidly changing situations and to
manage business in a deadline-driven
environment
Compensation includes base salary
plus commission, health benefits,
vacation, 401k and a culture where
employees are respected, supported
and given the opportunity to grow.
To apply, submit a personalized cover
letter and complete resume to
bjohnson@embarcaderopublshing.com
Teaching Position
Part-time christian preschool. Great
working conditions, competitive salary.
Requirements: 12 ECE units. Toddler
component experience necessary.
Call (650)325-2190 or fax resume
(650)325-2071
Technical
Hewlett-Packard State and Local
Enterprise Services, Inc. is accepting resumes for Technology
Consultant in Palo Alto, CA. (Ref.
#RSLPALTC21). Provide technology
consulting to customers and internal
project teams. Provide technical
support and/or leadership in creation
and delivery of technology solutions designed to meet customersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;
business needs and, consequently,
for understanding customersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; businesses. Extensive travel required
to various unanticipated locations
throughout the U.S. Mail resume to
Hewlett-Packard State and Local
Enterprise Services, Inc., 5400
Legacy Drive, MS H1-6F-61, Plano,
TX 75024. Resume must include
Ref. #RSLPALTC21, full name, email
address and mailing address. No
phone calls please. Must be legally
authorized to work in the U.S. without sponsorship. EOE.

Home
Services
701 AC/Heating
Temporary Change in Classified
Deadlines
Classified deadlines for our Best Of
and Readersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Choice newspapers
have been changed as follows:
-August 19 Weekly Tuesday,
August 16 at Noon
-August 24 Almanac Thursday,
August 18 at Noon
-August 26 Voice
Monday, August 22 at Noon
Early deadlines apply to these newspapers only. Please call 650/3268216 with any questions or to place
your ad. Thank you.

751 General
Contracting
NOTICE TO READERS: It is
illegal for an unlicensed person
to perform contracting work on
any project valued at $500.00
or more in labor and materials.
State law also requires that
contractors include their license
numbers on all advertising.
Check your contractor’s status
at www.cslb.ca.gov or 800-321CSLB (2752). Unlicensed persons taking jobs that total less
than $500.00 must state in their
advertisements that they are
not licensed by the Contractors
State License Board

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